The Endeavour
by Hiddenpairer
Summary: The story of not only a heartbroken fox's efforts to bring back the girl he loves, but also the deeply bonding adventures and unforseeable consequences as a result of his success.
1. Chapter 1: Technical Difficulties

**Just a quick note before you dive in; this story is the first of a trilogy, all three of which will centre mainly around the trials and adventures faced by the young heroes made for each other. I'm currently studying at University, so updates may be slightly spardoic, but I'm devoting a little time every day to writing what I wish to end up as both an engrossing read and a personal success. I'd be deeply grateful if you could spare the time to review it; constructive criticism only builds a better writer. Oh, and tell me what you enjoyed too, of course.  
That's about it. I sincerely hope you enjoy reading this as much as I did writing it. **

A young, twin-tailed fox stood behind a wall of thick glass, knowing that the next few seconds would determine whether he could have a few rare hours of peaceful sleep, or if his wounded soul would torment him for yet another night, granting him no rest until his throat was dry from crying and his pillow stained with tears.

Taking a deep breath, he pushed a button.

"Come on, _please_ work..." implored the fox, praying that the plant sitting in the clear specimen chamber in the next room would survive, bringing him one step closer to achieving happiness in life once again. He watched as his incredibly complex machine hummed smoothly to life, parts working in tandem to start producing the bursts of radiation which he seriously hoped the plant could withstand. The orange fox's heart began to pound as the machine really got going, releasing its peak concentration of radiation. Each moment that the plant stood tall lifted his spirits, every passing second of its survival giving him a wonderful feeling of hope...

But no. His face creased as the plant's leaves similarly started to shrivel, the first sign that it was doomed to share the same fatal fate as all the others.

"_N-no, why won't you - I can't - please don't-" _his mind despaired, a crushing sense of defeat silencing him yet at the same time burning his insides like bile.

Tails collapsed to the ground, eyes stinging while the machine died down.

Until now no failed trial of this experiment had produced a reaction in him that powerful. Then again, that was because at those times he knew his machine could be improved. Every stage of the process could be optimised, each part refined. Most importantly, he had believed that his hope would never die and that he would never give up.

But after five months of nothing but frustration, his resolve was starting to crack. Besides, this machine was now the absolute best he could possibly make it; there was nothing left to perfect. It was supposed to be his masterpiece of engineering as well as the solution to his long state of depression. And he had failed.

Tails didn't even need to look into the workshop to know what had become of the plant. He knew that by now it would be a withered, blackened mess. His head sunk lower as he reflected that he and the plant now actually had a lot in common.

Pressing another button which would immediately cleanse his whole workshop of the harmful radiation, he returned to the only slightly larger part of his house where he lived and slept. Not that he slept much anymore; in fact he actively avoided it whenever possible. Even if he could master his emotions enough to fall into a slumber, there was no escaping the inevitable nightmares, the bombardment of broken but all too real images in which he had already killed the person he loved most in the entire universe countless times.

Tails' thoughts remained dark as he retired to his room, wondering who would really care if he removed that pane of protective glass and allowed the radiation to consume him. As if in answer, his eyes fell upon the plant sitting in front of the window, the beautiful flower atop its stem swaying gently.

"Of course, you would care wouldn't you Cosmo?" Tails said. _This _plant was the one he eventually hoped to place safely in his regeneration machine and was the only thing that was left of his beloved friend after her death. Well, at first it had only been a seed, but after its planting, it had grown astonishingly quickly. It had just seemed right to keep her name as it was in life.

"I swear I won't give up." Tails told the plant, gently stroking one of its leaves. "Ever since you died I've promised that I would never stop trying to give you the life you deserve, and I intend to keep that promise." Although he didn't say it out loud, he knew that he practically owed Cosmo his life anyway; she had sacrificed herself to save not only him but also every one of his friends and a lot of other lives besides. The worst part, by far the most hideous twist of his entire life, was that _he _had been the one forced to kill her. The raw guilt weighed him down every day, and even if he could bring her back he didn't think that he could ever forgive himself. What would she say to him? "I just feel so lost, Cosmo_." _Tails spoke, wishing for some otherworldly force to carry his words and thoughts so she could hear him. Oh, how he missed her...

A knock at the front door snapped him out of his muddled thoughts. A visitor? At this time? Tails checked his watch and realised that it was half past one in the afternoon; a very normal hour for someone to visit. "Ugh...what's wrong with me?" Tails knew that his erratic sleeping patterns were affecting his sense of time, but this was just shameful.

Going downstairs and opening the door revealed Sonic the Hedgehog standing on his doorstep, tapping his foot as though the eight seconds he'd been made to wait for an answer were the longest of his life. Tails couldn't help but smile. "Hey Sonic, good to see you!"

"Heya buddy, how's it going?" Sonic replied, his trademark grin plastered all over his face.

Tails' smile faltered. "Uh, not so good, to be honest. I keep trying, but..." he trailed off.

"Hey, no worries, I know you'll get it right in the end!" Sonic was of course fully aware of Tails' efforts to bring Cosmo back to life; all of his friends were. Tails would often like to think that it was his pure love for Cosmo that had kept him going through these hard times, but he knew that without the regular visits by his friends he would have grinded to a hopeless halt quite a while ago.

"I don't know, maybe. I just feel like I've done all I can to get it functioning right but nothing seems to work."

"Tails, you need to rest." Sonic said, his tone turning more serious. "No offense, buddy, but you look a bit of a wreck."

"I feel like one." Tails sighed, looking down at himself. The sheen which his orange and white fur usually retained had vanished, leaving it looking messy and unkempt and he didn't need a mirror to know that his eyes were sunken, their normal sky-blue colour somewhat diminished. "I want to rest but I'm just so afraid that if I don't keep myself busy, my mind will ruin me with those images and nightmares and -"

"Listen to me, Tails." Sonic cut him off. "If you can't change it, change the way you think about it. That radiation might be a bit strong, but you're still doin' good with that _other_ thing, yeah?"

Sonic was right, as usual. The fact of the matter was that even if he perfected the radiation to the point where every plant in the world survived it, there would be no point in putting Cosmo in the chamber; for all its complexity, the machine was incomplete. It needed one more part, the final stage of the process which would perform the actual regeneration. The radiation's background presence was necessary for a successful regeneration, but if the plant was already dead by the time the last stage kicked in, it would be like performing CPR on a skeleton. In the dark.

The problem was that to some extent the part needed to be made out an extremely rare material, so rare in fact that Mobius' scientists had never been able to study its effects and uses to give it a suitable name, forcing them to name it after the person who discovered the first tiny fragment: Mowarium. Tails liked to call it Nowherium.

Despite this, many Mobians were in agreement that there was likely at least one huge supply of it deep underground, but no-one knew where. For this reason he had spent many hours of reading books and surfing the Internet on its appearance, chemical make-up and known physical properties in order to help him build a detector that would be able to guide him to any Mowarium within 100 miles. Unlike the fiasco he was having with the rest of the machine, this project was actually paying off. Indeed, he was expecting to complete his detector within the next few days. Even so, having every last molecule of Mowarium in the world at his disposal would be useless if he couldn't get everything else perfect.

Forcing a more positive attitude to mind, Tails managed a smile and said "Yeah, the detector is coming along well. Thanks, Sonic. You guys always know how to make me feel better."

"No problem Tails. So long as Eggman isn't around, we can all feel a lot better anyway."

Tails chuckled. "Yeah, I'm glad he hasn't showed his ugly face since we've come back. Still, where _is _he? I can't imagine him ever stopping his stupid plans for an 'Eggman Empire' and he's had loads of time to make his next move."

"Yeah, we'd all like to think he's turned over a new leaf but something tells me he's out there finishing his next ridiculous scheme." Sonic pondered, more to himself than anyone. "It doesn't matter, though." he said, turning his attention back to Tails. "He could come at us with a robot designed to smash hedgehogs, crush foxes and cook medium-rare steaks all at the same time and we'd still blow it up."

By now Tails was full-on laughing, something he hadn't done in a while. It felt good. "Haha! Yeah, he likes his food, doesn't he? For a guy with a massive brain he's very narrow-minded."

Sonic winked. "Too right. Anyway, he's not a concern at the minute, what you need to focus on is getting some rest, some time to regroup before you try to tackle the problems you're having. Promise me you'll at least take the rest of the day off; go for a run, have a decent wash and do something you enjoy, yeah?"

"I promise, Sonic. I'll just drop water bombs on Amy's head and see how long it takes for one of her hammers to appear, eh?"

Sonic laughed. "You won't have to wait long, buddy. Or even better stick post-it notes all over her laundry telling her to leave me alone! She's been a nightmare recently..."

"Is her charm still not rubbing off on you, then?"

Expecting a typical 'Hell no!' response, Tails was genuinely surprised when Sonic paused uncertainly, his eyes now averted to the ground.

"Ah, I don't know, Tails. Maybe 'nightmare' is a bit strong. I _have_ been spending quite a bit of time with her, but I still think I'd like her more if she stopped pestering me for attention."

Tails smirked and nodded slowly, a plan already forming in his mind. Yes, this would be an excellent distraction for the rest of the day. Before he could think of something witty with which to tease him, Sonic changed the subject.

"Oh yeah, as for your sleep trouble, take a couple of these just before you go to bed." Sonic held out a bottle filled with small pills. "Before you ask me where I got them, they're actually what you gave me a while back; you of all animals should know I'm more of a snoozer than someone who always sleeps at the same time, so I don't need 'em. Should keep away those bad dreams, too."

Feeling slightly more assured, Tails accepted them. "Thanks Sonic, I'll give them a go. Anyway, I'd better go and have that shower."

"Yeah, I gotta dash too. Oh! One more thing." Tails raised his eyebrows questioningly. "Cream said she's gonna come round tomorrow, give you some more company. We can't have you getting like you were a couple of months ago, can we?"

Tails shuddered. He didn't want to remember those few weeks when he'd fallen ill, meaning that no-one had come round for a while out of fear of catching whatever he had. Feeling obliged to continue on his regeneration machine and with nobody to talk to, he had been forced to cope with both loneliness and his own shoddy work, which had become sub-standard simply because of how terrible he felt. By the time anyone was sure that he was no longer contagious, he had become so angry and reclusive that he'd actually lashed out at Sonic when he first visited again. Tails had sworn that he would never allow himself to become like that again. For Cosmo.

"Please don't remind me, Sonic. I still feel terrible about what I did. And yeah, I'd like to see Cream again, it's been awhile."

"Yeah, let's not dwell on the past. I've really gotta go now. I'll see you later Tails! Remember to enjoy your free time!" And before Tails could even reply, Sonic was a blue blur on the horizon.

"I'll try – no, I _will_ enjoy it." Tails told himself. He shut the door and bounded upstairs to clean himself up.


	2. Chapter 2: Her World In His Hands

Cosmo wandered through the only world which life now provided for her, barely even acknowledging the fact that her surroundings offered both a stunning vista of plant life and a blazing sun overhead. Usually she would have been ecstatic just to exist in such a place which suited her so well, but by now she had seen it so many times before that the experience was wearing thin. Most days passed in exactly the same way.

And that was partly why she was also very, very unhappy; the days simply passed by. She wasn't living her life, even though she knew that by all rights she shouldn't be alive at all. She remembered everything that had happened aboard the Blue Typhoon: her new friends, the endless fighting and that final day when she'd had to say goodbye - how was she even able to think these things when she had already died? The other reason for her sadness was much more personal. It had happened only very shortly after she first found herself in this place...

**[Cosmo's Awakening]**

If anyone were to ask Cosmo how long the transition between her death on the Blue Typhoon and her awakening into this new world had been, they would receive a blank stare and not even a rough estimate of an answer. She had died and then woken up here. That was all she knew. Not that anyone could have asked her anyway, because there was no-one here. She had quickly set off in search for any form of life, walking and walking. It didn't help that for some reason the world was pitched in near constant darkness and even worse she had no idea where she was or where she was going. In other words, to say that she was scared would be a gross understatement.

It wasn't long before she couldn't take it anymore. Terrified that she was going to spend possibly an eternity in this dark and foreign world, she collapsed to the ground, sobbing.

"P-please help me!" she cried, by this point willing to accept the help of anyone who might hear her. No-one directly replied, but suddenly she thought she heard a sob that was not her own. She instantly shut her mouth and listened intently. Yes, there it was again! Someone else just as frightened was here too! She followed the sounds, which wasn't so difficult – the darkness may have rendered her eyes mostly blind, but as a result her hearing seemed to have become more acute.

Cosmo finally arrived at a shaking silhouette, obviously the source of the sobs. "Um...hello?" she ventured. The figure stopped crying and turned its head to face her, and then everything happened at once.

Blinding light illuminated everything without warning, forcing her sensitive eyes to clamp shut. However, during this split second of vision, a face had appeared right in front of her, a face which was now printed onto her mind's eye. It was the face of Tails.

"Tails?! W-where are you?!" Cosmo screamed, flailing her arms wildly to find him. There was no response and she still couldn't see. She forced herself to calm down; he probably hadn't realised it was her. Her sight would return in mere moments and then she could be with him again. Slowly, agonisingly slowly, her surroundings became less blurred as her vision recovered. For a moment everything looked like Tails, likely due to how much she wanted to see him. At last her vision returned to normal – and there he was.

"Oh Tails!" she cried, flinging herself into a vice-like hug with him before he could even speak. "I've missed you so much!" She was so happy, so relieved, felt so much more secure in his embrace...but then she realised she wasn't in his embrace. He wasn't hugging her back. Tails' arms and head hung limply, as if he couldn't even muster the energy to lift them.

A surge of panic rushed through Cosmo. "_Why isn't he responding?" _her mind demanded, dread filling every part of body. "_What if he's forgotten me? What if he hates me for leaving?" _She withdrew her arms from the hug, gently took hold of his head and lifted it, forcing his eyes to look into hers.

"Tails? What's wrong?" she spoke softly, terrified of what he might say. His eyes just looked defeated. When she still received only an empty stare, she took her hands in his, trying to reassure him. "It's ok, I'm scared too. Tell me what's wrong. D-don't you trust me?" Her voice was becoming louder and more desperate, tears starting to pour down her face. "P-please tell me Tails! I can't bear to see you like this!"

At last Tails responded; but in the worst possible way. He pulled his hands away from hers, simply shook his head and said "I'm sorry Cosmo." He turned away and sat down.

And that was it. She felt broken. This couldn't be happening: she had been forced to die, only to wake up into this nightmare world and now the person she trusted most couldn't even look at her. She couldn't take it. Her brain was assaulted by a sudden outburst of horrific memories, everything that she had lost being forced upon her, clouding her vision once again. Completely unable to cope, she fainted.

**[Return To Present]**

And that was pretty much how it had stayed for the past who knows how long. Although there were now distinguishable days and nights, time just didn't seem flow properly in this world. During the day a sun shone just like on many planets, but sometimes in the night that same blinding light would suddenly appear, usually resulting in a small yelp of surprise from both Cosmo and Tails. It would then almost always vanish after a completely random length of time. The strangest part was that _this_ light had no visible source; it gave light everywhere but seemed to come from nowhere. It was as if someone just decided to turn on a light switch and then turn it off again. These unusual disturbances combined with no way to accurately measure time made it hard for Cosmo to even guess how long she'd been living here. Her best guess was a Seedrian equivalent of about half a year.

As for Tails himself, his behaviour had barely changed. He was unhappy all the time and nothing Cosmo ever said seemed to cheer him up or make him laugh. The most progress she'd made was getting an explanation of why he was so depressed, which was "I don't know." This didn't really help her. He also didn't repel her hugs anymore, but he still refused to wrap his own arms around her. She still had no idea how Tails himself had gotten here and the worst part was that she simply didn't know why he had become so withdrawn from her – it killed her inside.

She tried to get him to open up every day, talking to him and making physical contact often, but nothing worked. This wasn't the Tails she knew, and his constant state of sadness was now rubbing off on her. More and more often her mind found itself being plagued by negative thoughts, wondering if she was destined to spend the rest of her life in a world where it was only her and a friend who didn't care. Every day was similar to the point where it was ridiculous, the only deviation being that blasted light that appeared randomly and then disappeared just as randomly.

Even the weather was predictable. Although Cosmo had no way of telling the time except for the sun's progress in the sky during daytime, she had noticed a pattern that it rained without fail every day, at the same time. The intensity of the rain also never differed, manifesting itself in an odd sprinkling formation.

In fact, as Cosmo sat next to Tails on another hopeless day, she knew it was about that time again. Yes, here came the rain now...

* * *

Tails found himself whistling as he watered his precious plant, Cosmo. This fact alone was a pleasant sign that things were finally looking up, a rare occurrence for him nowadays. Not only had his time out yesterday revitalised his body, but the pills had also refreshed his mind more than he could have dreamed; ironic, considering Sonic had been correct in that they kept his sleep nightmare-free.

Feeling better than he had in months, Tails had made sure to eat a decent breakfast that morning before getting to work on his detector. His head remarkably clear, he'd made huge progress with it and eventually decided to quit while he was ahead. He now expected to finish it tomorrow. There was of course the possibility that there existed no Mowarium whatsoever on Mobius, but Tails didn't like to think about that. He wasn't going to let something he didn't even know get him down, not when everything was going so well.

Tails pushed every negative thought from his mind and refocused on watering Cosmo. He smiled gently as he finished sprinkling the last few drops into the soil. Even though the weather outside was dreary, the sight of her standing tall in his room warmed his heart. "There you go Cosmo, that'll keep you healthy." he said. As if in response, her leaves and flower suddenly swayed vigorously, even though there was practically no wind in his room. He had no idea if she could actually hear him (although she _did_ seem to react to his voice a bit too often for it to be pure coincidence), but he did know that every time it happened, his devotion to returning her to him only deepened. To him, she always looked beautiful and always would, plant or not. In fact the very reason he believed that the regeneration machine could bring her back in the first place was because this plant was so extraordinary: the pure green colour of her leaves, the speed she had grown, the way she responded to his words; he just knew that there was still a piece of Cosmo in there somewhere, waiting to be brought back.

For the second time in two days, the sound of his doorbell stopped Tails' train of thought. "Ah, must be Cream!" he said, looking forward to relaxing with another of his friends before finishing his detector and then working on that radiation once again. He hurried downstairs and opened the door.

"Hey Cream, come on in!" he said cheerfully.

"Um, thank you Tails." she replied. He frowned at her stiff politeness. True, Cream's mother had always taught her daughter impeccably in that respect, but Cream usually allowed herself to ease off when it came to her friends, especially with Tails, since he was the one closest to her fairly young age. It wasn't just that, though, she also looked plain unhappy.

"What's up?" he asked as she dutifully wiped her shoes on the mat and shut the door. "You look a bit down."

Cream's frown deepened and she lowered her head slightly. "It's just – I don't want to say anything that'll upset you, Tails." she said quietly. "I know that last time I kept saying things about Cosmo when you didn't want to be reminded and – oh no, I'm doing it again! I-I'm sorry, please forgive me, I don't want to hurt you!"

Tails stood there in total shock. He did indeed remember the last time Cream had visited. Back then he still just wanted to be left alone and had believed that his anger towards her every time she mentioned Cosmo was completely justified. After all, he was the one who'd lost the most, wasn't he?

Looking back now, however, he realised what an ignorant and selfish attitude that had been. Just because he didn't like to talk about her, that didn't mean that other people had to feel the same. Tails knew that everything Cream had said about Cosmo during her last visit had consisted of nothing but praise for her wonderful attributes and character. And for him to think that no-one else had the right to celebrate how her gentle, caring yet still determined nature had brightened all of their lives...

This time it was Tails' turn to hang his head. "Don't apologise Cream, you did nothing wrong. My behaviour was unfair and completely inconsiderate. I realise now that, well, for you talking about an issue is your way of dealing with it. That's far better than hiding from it, like I stupidly did. I'm sorry, Cream." For a few moments there was only the sound of rain falling to the ground outside, neither of them entirely sure what to say next.

Tails decided to break the sour atmosphere and spoke up again. "Hey listen, if you can forgive me I promise I won't be an idiot and get mad again. We can talk about our memories all you like; besides, I feel much more comfortable discussing it these days."

"Oh, I'm happy you're feeling better! And you really mean it? We can talk about Cosmo?"

"I pinky promise." Tails said, smirking and offering his gloved little finger out to her. He knew that this was Cream's favourite way of ensuring trust in her friends' words.

"YAY! Thank you Tails, thank you!" she cried, completely ignoring his finger and instead rushing forward to hug him.

Tails fought a grin as he returned the hug. "Uh, Cream...your umbrella's still up."

Cream gasped, realising that her wet umbrella was now dripping water all over his carpet. Tails laughed as she stammered out apologies. "Haha! It doesn't matter, I'll clean it up later. No, really!" he said, seeing that Cream was about to insist that she'd do it. With her umbrella down and her coat and shoes off, Tails said, "Hey, go on into the living room, I'll get you a drink."

Cream beamed at him. "Thank you Tails. You know, you look so much better when you smile!"

Tails gave her a resigned look, knowing she was referring to how seldom he _had_ been smiling recently. "I think we all look a lot healthier when we smile, Cream." With that he poured them both a drink of juice and returned to the living room. Only then did Tails realise that Cheese wasn't with Cream, something nearly unheard of. Upon asking, Cream frowned. She explained that he wasn't feeling well and had told her to leave without him. Tails nodded and they sat down to exchange talk on what they'd been doing recently.

"Yeah, so Sonic was here yesterday afternoon." Tails said. "Told me I needed to take the day off."

"What did you do?" Cream asked.

"First I had a decent wash and shower; I _really_ needed one." Tails began to smile as he recalled what he'd done next. "Sonic let it slip that he might like Amy a bit more than he lets on, so I went round to Amy's house and snuck in through the back door while she was sunbathing." he went on. "I stuck a post-it note on her front door saying 'If you want to snare Sonic follow the instructions hidden in your house.' Then I hid a load of other notes telling her to bother him less, learn to control her temper, things like that. I put them in her handbag, under her pillow, behind her TV – they're all over her house!"

Cream had been giggling throughout his explanation but now she couldn't stop laughing. "Oh, that's so funny Tails! But I wonder if she'll actually follow the advice..."

"Now _that_ would be hilarious." Tails said, smiling.

Cream finished her drink and her voice turned more serious (if that was the right word; Tails had always thought it was impossible for Cream's voice to sound serious about anything).

"Tails, if you don't mind I'd like to see this machine you're working on."

Tails frowned slightly. He had no idea why she would be interested in machinery, especially when his own inventions were extremely complicated. "Are you sure? No offense, but I don't think you'll be able to understand a lot of the stuff going on."

"Yes, I'm sure. I know I won't be able to follow everything; I just want to see what you've been working so hard on. So I know you haven't been slaving away to get no reward."

Tails nodded and led her to the large sliding doors to his workshop. He punched in a password and they noiselessly slid open. He led her inside. After a few moments Cream gasped at the sheer scale of everything. "Oh my gosh! Tails, how do you do this all by yourself? You're so clever!" Tails felt that little buzz which always rushed through him whenever anyone praised his inventions and machinery. He wasn't a vain fox, but he was glad he was still capable of being proud of himself.

"Ah, it's nothing spectacular." he said modestly. "It's not even working properly yet."

"What's the problem?" Cream asked.

He felt another twinge of excitement, happy that someone else was taking an interest. "Well, for a start there's a whole part missing over there." he explained, pointing at a large stand with nothing on it. "But that space should be filled very soon. I've just gotta find the right material to make it. The _real_ problem..." he walked over to a relatively small component and tapped it. "...is this bit here."

"Is that the radiation thing?"

"I know I said it produces radiation, but that's not an accurate description. It doesn't give out anything actually radioactive like uranium and plutonium atoms or isotopes. Instead, it releases radio waves, a form of electromagnetic radiation, and they have low frequency but a long wavelength. They're basically low energy photons, not radioactive but still deadly in high enough concentrations. What I don't understand is why the plants are dying so quickly; according to my calculations it should take many times longer before most plants even start to wither. I've tried everything: changing the wave concentrations, adjusting the rate of release, optimising how – uh, Cream?"

She looked absolutely baffled. "Oh, sorry. I really need to stop doing that." Tails said, scratching the back of his head.

"Um...I trust that you're right, Tails." she said, still bemused. Suddenly she started giggling.

"Why are you laughing?"

"Do you know how enthusiastic you get when you talk about these things? You're eyes light up so much!"

"Yeah, I know I go all geeky, that's why I struggle with girls so much." Tails realised he'd perhaps revealed a bit too much about himself and blushed slightly.

Cream giggled again. "Oh Tails don't be silly; you know that Cosmo really liked you."

A pained expression crossed Tails' face. He was about to tell Cream that what she'd just said was nonsense, but then he remembered his promise – he had to talk to others about Cosmo or he'd never get over it, especially if he couldn't bring her back.

"You really think so?" he said, still slightly evasive.

"Of course! She always wanted to be near you! You know, there are probably other girls that like you too, because you're so thoughtful and gentle and -"

"L-look, can we change the subject?" Tails said loudly, now fully embarrassed.

Cream laughed and nodded. Then she suddenly looked thoughtful, her expression changing as though something had just occurred to her. "Those waves are killing the plants you test, right?" Tails nodded. "Aren't there some things that are special about Cosmo though? Maybe she could survive them."

"That's true. I mean, for all we know she could be entirely immune to them. But we can't take that chance. We only get one shot, and if it fails..." Tails stopped himself, refusing to consider that outcome.

Cream sighed. "You're right." She wandered off to look at the machine. Tails stood there as an all too familiar sense of helplessness crept over him. He couldn't tell Cream that he was out of ideas to fix the wave machine. Obviously she knew he was having problems, but there was no way he would allow her to lose hope completely; after all, his friends' faith in him was the only thing that kept him believing too.

Cream's voice dragged him out of his thoughts. "Tails? You said this bit releases radio waves, didn't you?"

"Yup, why?" he said, mildly surprised that she had remembered. "Curious about what they do?"

"No, it's just that this dial here has 'Radio' on it with a lot of other words as well, but the dial's set to something called 'Gamma'."

Tails was speechless. Had he really been that stupid? "W-what?!" he spluttered. "Are you sure? Let me see!" He rushed over, almost knocking Cream over to examine the small dial on the machine. And she was dead right.

Tails realised immediately what had happened. The machine was in fact designed to produce not only radio waves, but other types of electromagnetic wave too. The dial was just for selecting which wave was to be released. Gamma waves were high energy photons, the opposite of radio waves and extremely destructive to the chemical bonding in living systems, even in very low amounts. For this reason, 'Radio' and 'Gamma' were on opposite ends of the dial. In his initial excitement at the opportunity to bring back Cosmo, he'd simply twisted the dial to the wrong end. No wonder the test plants were dying so quickly; he might as well have ran over them with a lawnmower.

Conflicting emotions rose rapidly within him: half was of total relief for the problem being found, the other half sickened at himself for never once checking it. He'd made so many careful, difficult (and probably needless) improvements and adjustments while all along the problem had been staring him in the face. In the end, however, pure relief won out and tears of joy began to roll down his cheeks.

"Oh t-thank you Cream!" he managed, pulling her into a hug. "Thanks so much!"

"Huh? What for?" Cream said, still not sure of the importance of her find.

"You found the problem! Those gamma waves are really nasty, now we know why the plants were dying so fast! I'm such an _idiot_! All that stress for nothing..."

"I'm glad I could help, Tails!" Cream replied, now smiling widely. "Don't be too hard on yourself, because now you can test another plant, can't you?"

His eyes widened. "You're right! Let's do it right now!" Tails twisted the dial to the correct end and rushed off to his specimen cupboard.

**Don't get too confused - there are two foxes in this story who are known as Tails, but they are not the same. All will be explained as the story progresses.  
Also, I apologise to anyone who became very confused when the story didn't follow...you read chapter 10, which I accidentally uploaded. Sorry.**


	3. Chapter 3: Enter The Madman

"Alright, I think that's far enough for now. Let's park it up!" The very aptly named Dr. Eggman pulled a few levers on his control panel and the enormous, human-shaped machine he was driving compacted itself, setting down on a grassy plain.

"But Doctor," a tall gold robot protested, "we are in the middle of nowhere! Can't we continue to our main base? It is only another -"

"Shut up Decoe!" Eggman snapped. "And it's _my _base, not _ours_. I don't know why I keep you talking rubbish heaps around sometimes."

Decoe and a smaller, silver robot called Bocoe exchanged a dubious look. They'd never try to confirm their suspicions with him for fear of their inner mechanics being torn out, but they could both hazard a good guess as to why Eggman preferred to keep them with him.

Bocoe decided to support his robotic friend's case. "But look at how easy we are to spot! We are very open to attack here, especially since Sonic lives nearby!"

"Same goes for you Bocoe! Shut whatever hole you're talking out of! This open field may make us easy to see, but it also means _we_ can see anyone coming, even Sonic. This bad boy's got more than enough firepower to deal with his meddling, anyway."

"You always say that..." muttered a third robot, Bokkun.

"What was that?!" Eggman demanded.

"Nothing, Doctor." Bokkun said simply. Eggman raised his incredibly thick eyebrows. Every time he used a threatening tone to any of his subordinates, they would always be practically tripping over themselves trying to apologise. Bokkun, however, just sounded unhappy.

"What's twisted your wires?" Eggman asked in a bored voice.

"Nothing, Doctor." Bokkun replied again. Eggman shook his head, putting the tiny robot's behaviour down to just being tired, although he knew in the back of his mind that he'd designed all of them to never become tired at all. It didn't matter. In a couple of hours he'd probably be back to his old annoying self.

"Listen you bunch of complaining fools. I'm exhausted; you should know by now that searching for Chaos Emeralds does that to an evil genius. And now only one remains to be found, so the last thing I need is you lot irritating me with your endless antics. Now what we're going to do is rest here for a bit while I get some well-deserved food in me and take another look at that substance we dug up a few days ago."

"You mean that green stuff?" Decoe asked.

"What else would I mean, you bonehead?" Not long ago Eggman had received a signal from his Emerald detector, but while searching underground Bokkun had stumbled across a massive rock formation giving off a strange green glow, the type of which none of them had ever seen before. Figuring he could sell it to some idiot with a soft spot for shiny things, Eggman had pilfered as much of it as he could. Still, the excavation had been hard work and he wanted to make sure it couldn't be put to better use first. "After our little stop here, we're going to find that last Chaos Emerald, which is relatively close according to my radar. Is that understood?"

"Yes, Doctor." they replied in reluctant unison.

"Excellent." Eggman said, rubbing his hands together. "Even with six Emeralds, no-one can stop me! And when I find that last one...HAHAHAHAHA!"

* * *

"Owowowowow!" Tails yelped, having just stubbed his toe on the edge of a wardrobe in his room. It didn't take long, however, for his cries of agony to turn into fits of laughter. He fell onto his bed, his namesake swinging in huge arcs, such was the happiness that was filling his heart. His toe still throbbed with pain but he didn't care. Tails was on cloud nine.

It had worked. The specimen plant had survived, and had done so for far longer than would be necessary for the rest of the machine to revive Cosmo. At last, he had a real shot at this. He grabbed the phone from the small table next to his bed and punched in Sonic's number.

"Come on Sonic, come on!" he hummed impatiently, barely able to contain himself. He found himself staring out the window while waiting. Cream had left a short time ago and the weather had cleared up nicely. So nicely, in fact, that this evening now supplied him with a beautiful sunset right outside his bedroom window, lifting his spirits even further.

Then the call connected and Tails blurted out everything before Sonic could even say hello. "Sonic! It worked! I'd just put a part of the machine on the wrong setting and Cream spotted it! I've tested another plant and it survived! It's -"

"Whoa, whoa! Slow down there Tails! I'm glad it worked, but you have to calm down a bit, I can barely follow what you're sayin'! So, how do you feel?"

"Oh Sonic, you have no idea!" Tails allowed his head to fall onto his pillow, body lying flat out, arms and legs splayed. "I'm so happy..."

"Well, you ain't got her back yet but you know what this means, don'tcha buddy?"

"What's that?"

"You've just gotta finish your detector and find that stuff, then that's it! Build that part and she's back!"

Tails bolted upright. "You're right!" he gasped. "I've gotta go finish it!"

"Hang on a sec Tails, remember what I said about -" But Tails had cut off the call. Memories were flooding his mind: wandering through a gently lit cave holding her hand; watching the stars while admiring her beautiful blue eyes and gorgeous green hair; embracing her warm body in front of a full moon; the raw emotions overwhelmed him as he relived the best moments of his life.

He couldn't stop now. He couldn't wait or falter. He had to complete his detector. Right now.

* * *

One of the very few perks of living on an unknown world was that occasionally weird and wonderful things happened. Luckily for Cosmo, this one was quite wonderful. Indeed, it offered a whisper of opportunity to make both her and Tails happy for the first time since being unceremoniously dumped here. Because this evening the sunset was beautiful.

Cosmo had already prepared a remarkably tasty meal for the both of them, despite having only makeshift utensils and foodstuffs to work with. Thankfully she'd remembered the particular recipe for this one, somehow managed to find the raw ingredients and even built a fire to provide the necessary heat.

When Cosmo had presented the meal on plates she'd made a while back, Tails had looked genuinely surprised. When he took a bite, however, his expression transformed into one of pure delight and he immediately started to scoff it down; something which delighted Cosmo herself, seeing as she hadn't seen him happy in such a long time.

About half way through the meal, when Tails had finally found time to stop stuffing his face, he said, "You didn't have to do this, Cosmo. It must've taken so much effort."

"I _wanted_ to do this for us, Tails." she had replied. "Besides, it wasn't that hard. The ingredients just seemed to be there when I needed them."

Tails nodded. "Yeah, this world's strange like that, isn't it? I mean, we don't even _need_ to have any food..."

Cosmo's face momentarily turned sour; she didn't like to think about that. By far the weirdest thing about living here was that neither of them had ever felt the usually instinctive urge to eat. Sure, there was food here and they could taste it and swallow it, but their bodies just didn't seem to require fuel to function. How they could possibly survive or indeed what was providing them with nourishment was beyond Cosmo, and eventually she had grown to simply avoid the subject. "Let's not talk about that." she had said, allowing herself to smile at him again. If she didn't look happy, she feared that he would pick up on it and return to his soul-crushing state of mind. There was no way she was going to let that happen.

After finishing the meal, Tails had seemed quite content. It was then she had noticed that sunset. Cosmo realised that this happy coincidence could brighten Tails' mood further and provide her with a real chance to become close to him and get him to open up. She had in fact already taken the initiative to guide him by the hand to the edge of a nearby cliff, where the view was simply awe-inspiring. However, there was now just one problem which Cosmo faced.

Tails would not, of course, initiate any kind of intimacy with her. He never had done in the entire time they'd been here. So, as Cosmo sat next to Tails watching the sun fall slowly on the horizon, she knew that she now had to do something she had never done before.

She was going to have to flirt with him.

Cosmo didn't even know where to start. The truth was she had far more of an idea what _not_ to do when trying to give a guy affectionate signals, Amy having taught that lesson on a daily basis aboard the Blue Typhoon. It didn't help that she'd never even seen a boy before until her eyes had set upon Tails those long months ago. Despite her concerns, a wonderful tingle couldn't help but course through her body; for some reason the fact that the first boy she had ever met was the one with whom she'd fallen in love warmed her heart. To her it just felt as though it was meant to be.

And before she knew what she was doing, Cosmo found herself wrapping an arm around Tails and her head snuggling against his shoulder. For a moment she was relieved that her instincts had made the first step for her, but her bubble soon burst when she felt Tails' body instantly stiffen. What did she do now?

"Tails?" she whispered, not planning to say another word. For now she just wanted to gauge his reaction. Tails did not respond, a conflicting look crossing his face as though a battle were being waged inside his head.

Cosmo already knew that Tails was just as shy as herself when it came to talking about their innermost feelings, especially with each other. So she decided not to talk too much and instead give Tails a chance to express himself through other means. Unfortunately, this was also extremely difficult for her because what she was about to ask him would require every last ounce of her courage. She took a deep breath.

Cosmo moved her free hand over to Tails' own and held it gently, her thumb stroking his fingers. "It's beautiful, isn't it?" she remarked, naturally referring to the sunset to which they were being treated.

Tails nodded. "Yes, it is." he finally responded.

"Doesn't it remind you of when we sat together on planet Marmolim?" she coaxed, hoping to stir his memory of their blissful embrace when they had admired the full moon. Cosmo certainly remembered; she missed his tender affections so, so badly.

Tails flushed a deep red. "I - I mean -" he stammered.

Cosmo giggled. "It's ok." she assured him. "Listen, I want to ask you something." Tails' eyes widened to the point where he looked terrified. Cosmo lifted her head from his shoulder and positioned her mouth right next to his ear, her head resting softly against his. At this point she had thought her heart would be hammering, her mouth dry from nerves. But this wasn't the case. In fact it was easy, felt so natural when, still whispering, she asked "Tails...will you dance with me?"

For that split second after asking, she was actually confident he would say yes, although even Cosmo herself knew that it was likely because she was slightly intoxicated by the closeness of the moment, sure that Tails would feel it too. Then she was suddenly dragged back to reality, nearly falling flat on her face when Tails jerked away from her in shock. "W-what? You want to..._dance?"_ He said the word as though it were a disease. Cosmo felt a pang of anguish, mental pain rising within her from such a negative reaction.

But she wasn't going to give up that easily. She did not allow her hurt to show and gave him her best smile. Taking both of her hands in his as though she intended to start dancing anyway, she gazed into his startlingly sky-blue eyes. "I want us to be close." she said sincerely. "Dance with me."

The silence that followed was horrible for Cosmo. She waited for what seemed like an eternity, her mind pleading for Tails to let go of his sadness and shyness. Finally, after a lifetime, he spoke. "I-I'm sorry." he managed, tears now running down his cheeks. "I just can't." He got up and ran.

"NO!" Cosmo screamed, the slight inner twinge of pain instantly flaring into full-blown agony, her heart tearing itself apart. "Why?! Tails, p-please tell me why!" She too was now sobbing, her soul being crushed under the unbearable pressure of his constant rejection. But there was no way she was going to give up on him; she loved him far too much. Cosmo scrambled to her feet and took off after him.


	4. Chapter 4: Secrets

Cream's room was spectacularly neat and tidy. Yes, she liked to keep it organised and clean but anyone else seeing it now would call it borderline obsessive, even for her. Luckily she didn't have to explain her behaviour to anyone except her mother, who had already accepted Cream's explanation of "I'm just trying to maintain your standards, mother." This was half true, considering that any imperfection in her room would always be rectified very quickly by her mum. However, the small brown-eyed rabbit knew she was lying to her own mother, and she hated doing it, but for Cream this was far better than the alternative.

The very reason she had been keeping her room in such an immaculate state was to keep her mum out of there. If she ever came in and looked inside that second drawer – Cream didn't want to think about it. She would be absolutely mortified, because that drawer contained a beautiful gift for a friend. Its discovery wouldn't be so bad apart from the fact that it clearly stated who the intended recipient was, Cream having already carved the message 'For a Very Special Kitsune' upon it. Despite possessing the gift for a few weeks, Cream had put off giving it to him. But as she hurried into her room, she knew that it was now or never. He would finish that strange machine soon and then Cosmo would very likely be back.

Cream couldn't help but think it quite ironic that she was the one to discover the main problem preventing Cosmo's return. Of course Cream missed her late friend very much, but recently she had become quite close to him...still, she could hardly offer something so heartfelt and personal right after someone he cared about so much came back. What would he say? What would _Cosmo_ say if she were to find out? She had to give it to him now.

Cream rushed over to the drawer, retrieved the gift and pocketed it. Cheese, the only other person (well, Chao) who knew about all this, heard the disturbance and awoke from his sleep. Still feeling groggy from illness, he could only manage a weak "Chao chao?"

"I'm sorry Cheese, I can't talk now." Cream said in a hushed voice. "I've got to deliver this. Get better soon, ok?" Cheese nodded and gave a small smile when he saw what she was doing. Cream ran downstairs and called "I'm going out for a bit, mother!"

"Again?" she heard the reply. "Alright, but don't be back too late!"

"I won't!" she called again. She opened the front door to be greeted by two things: the sun's orange glow, now barely visible on the horizon...and Amy marching up the path to her house. "_Oh no..._" Cream instantly thought, sensing the pink hedgehog's stroppy mood a mile off.

"Cream!" Amy shouted, still only half-way up the path. "_You_ didn't do it, did you?"

Cream shut the front door to prevent her mother hearing and waited until her temperamental friend had stomped the remaining distance before replying "Um, didn't do what, Amy?"

"Someone's gone and stuck notes all over my house trying to tell me how to woo Sonic! You'd better not be responsible!" She pointed an accusatory finger. Under any other circumstances Cream would probably be struggling not to fall on the floor laughing her ears off, but right now she was only concerned that the gift was in her pocket. It was possible Amy might spot it.

"N-no, I don't know who did that." Cream lied. She had already decided it would be best to calm Amy as soon as possible. The best way to do that was usually by agreeing with her. "I mean, it's up to you, isn't it?"

"Too right it's up to me! How dare they?!" she bawled, actually shaking with anger. "_I_ decide how to treat my Sonic! ME!"Amy growled, before suddenly sighing happily. "Oh Sonic, one day I'll win you over..." She swooned, hands clasped together and love hearts practically forming in her determined green eyes.

Cream just stood there with a priceless look on her face. Amy's rapid changes of mood genuinely scared her. "Uh, you're right Amy, but I was just heading to Tails' house, so -"

"Great idea Cream!" Amy interrupted. "Maybe he knows who insulted my extensive knowledge of love!" And before Cream had a chance to protest, Amy had grabbed her wrist and began to drag her away, the gift still in her pocket.

* * *

Tails wiped his brow as he appraised his own handiwork. "Whew! I think that's all finished." He turned to the blue hedgehog standing behind him. "What do you think, Sonic?"

"Well, I know nothing about this mechanics stuff, but if it works then it's another job well done, buddy!" Sonic had arrived less than a minute after Tails had abruptly ended their phone call, trying to convince the fox to rest for a while. After a very short time he'd realised that Tails was in that state where he was a mechanical maverick, and that right then was definitely the best time for him to complete his detector. Now, less than an hour later, Tails was waving it in front of his face, seemingly satisfied with what he had created.

"Let's test it out!" Tails said cheerfully, pulling four batteries from a cupboard. Then he frowned. "What's wrong, Sonic?"

Sonic was barely managing to stifle his laughs. Then he gave up and burst out laughing, banging his fist on a nearby worktable. Tails crossed his arms and scowled, his namesake stiffly upright and eyes demanding an explanation. "Hahaha! This thing runs on _batteries_?! The last time I saw you use _those_ as a power source, I don't even think Amy was chasing me!" Sonic lost himself in another fit of laughter.

Tails waited until Sonic got hold of himself. "Yes Sonic, it uses batteries. And they're going to help me bring back the girl I care most for in the entire universe." he said quietly.

"Oh, geez...sorry Tails. I didn't mean to offend ya, it's just that your inventions usually use a Chaos Emerald now or something. You know I want Cosmo back as much as you do."

"_No you don't Sonic." _Tails thought. "_You really don't._" But he knew that the hedgehog meant well and he could never stay mad at his best friend. "That's alright Sonic." he said, smiling slightly. "I can't use a Chaos Emerald because we don't have one. Even if we did, I don't think I'd waste it on this; it's only a portable radar. Besides, the only reason it took so long to make is because it's the thing we're actually looking for that's so complex and rare." he explained.

Sonic nodded. "I understand. Well, like you said, what are we waiting for?"

"Yeah, let's do it!" Tails exclaimed, that enthusiastic spring in his step again. He inserted the batteries and flicked a switch to turn it on, seriously hoping that the 100 mile range was enough to detect a source of Mowarium from his house. He didn't want to have to start travelling all over the place looking for some.

After a few tense seconds, a flashing blip appeared on the screen. "Is that it?" Sonic dumbly asked.

Tails leapt into the air out of joy and relief. "Of course that's it! And look, it's a strong signal only about five miles from here! The X-Tornado will get us there in minutes!"

Sonic frowned, noting the fast fading daylight. "Tails, this time I really do think we ought to go tomorrow. It's half past eight and there isn't much light left outside." he reasoned.

"I only want to check out the location to verify that the detector works." Tails countered. "I promise I won't start looking underground or anything. It'd also help to know if there's enough of it to keep the regeneration process going."

"What do you mean, 'keep it going'?" Sonic asked, confused.

"Ah, I might not have already told you, but the Mowarium that I'll incorporate into that final machine part will decompose during the actual process. In other words, I'll need to inject more as it depletes or else the machine will stop."

"But how will you put more in? Isn't there dangerous radiation?"

"I've already built an external delivery tube leading from the observation room where we will be to where the component will stand when I've made it. The observation room's protected by a thick layer of glass which the radio waves can't penetrate, so we'll be fine. From there, it'll be a piece of cake. The most important thing is that the supply of Mowarium doesn't stop until the regeneration is complete." Tails finished.

"Yeah, we wouldn't want that..." Sonic said nervously, a hideous image of a half alive, half dead Cosmo appearing in his head. He forced it away.

"So, are you coming to check it out?" Tails asked.

"Well, alright. But _only_ to look, I'm not going to let you start trying to get at it, yeah?"

"Affirmative!" Tails said, winking and giving a mock salute. "You wanna ride with me in the X-Tornado?"

"I'll stay on the wing." Sonic said as he hopped up onto it. "You know I don't like being in tight spots!"

"Alright then, let's -" Tails was cut off as his doorbell rang. "Again? Stay there Sonic, I should only be a minute." Sonic nodded and practically collapsed flat out on the wing, hands behind his head.

Tails jogged out of his workshop to the front door and opened it to find Cream stood behind it for the second time that day. "Cream? Didn't you go home a couple of hours ago?"

"Yes, except I was forced back out. I flew ahead to warn you in advance." she said, wiggling her huge ears.

"Huh?" Tails was utterly baffled. "Warn me of what?" His question was answered for him when he heard distant yells that could only belong to one being on Mobius. "Ohhh, no. What does she want?"

"She came to ask you about those notes in her house." Cream said, giggling.

Tails' eyes widened in horror as painful flashbacks of getting thwacked by Amy's tremendous hammers rushed through his brain. "You didn't drop me in it did you?!" he worriedly asked, already preparing to fly away. Fast.

"Of course I didn't! She came to my house first, I told her I didn't know anything and now she's dragged me out here to interrogate you." Cream quickly explained, the shouts rapidly becoming louder.

"Good." Tails sighed, thoroughly relieved that Cream had indeed notified him early; despite his pink hammer phobia, Tails wasn't sure if he'd have been able to restrain his own laughter if Amy alone had turned up demanding answers. "Right now we've got another problem, because Sonic's here too. Better to persuade her to leave quickly."

"Why's Mr Sonic here?" Cream asked.

Before Tails could answer, the yelling had become too loud to ignore and a few seconds later Amy appeared, sprinting the last few strides to finally catch up with the rabbit. "Cream...no fair...can't fly..." she panted. Then her gaze fixed on Tails.

Tails knew that if they were ever going to investigate that area tonight, he had to get the topic going before Amy started ranting on about those notes, or else he wouldn't get a word in edgeways. He seized the chance while she was still catching her breath. "So like I was saying Cream," he said loudly, "I've finished my detector and we were just off to look at the place it's picked out." Cream looked delighted, most likely due to the news of his radar's completion, but Amy just narrowed her eyes. Why was she looking at him so suspiciously? Then, too late, Tails realised his mistake.

"_We?_" Amy's expression turned into a smile that was almost evil. "Who else is in there?"

"Oh, no-one." Tails said, trying to cover for his blunder. It didn't work.

"Yeah right! It's Sonic, isn't it? Don't worry, I can tell by your feeble attempts at acting casual!"

Busted. "Yes, it's Sonic." Tails conceded. "If you want, I suppose you can ride with us in the X-Tornado and I'll drop you both off at your homes on the way back." Somehow he sensed that Sonic wouldn't be ecstatic about Amy's presence, but he could hardly just leave her here on her own. She'd probably snoop around and wreck his stuff anyway.

"Sounds like a plan." Amy said. "See, everyone's happy when you're up front! Like how Cream told me that your machine's nearly done!" She stood on his doorstep for a moment as if in thought, then crossed the threshold into the house and gave Tails a surprising hug. He let out a confused noise before Amy spoke quietly into his ear. "By the way, I'm glad everything's coming together to bring back Cosmo." She pulled away and smiled sincerely at him, reminding Tails that despite her temper, Amy was as faithful a friend as anyone he'd ever met.

"Thanks, Amy."

Amy nodded, knowing that nothing more needed to be said. "Well, I'm guessing he's in your workshop!" she said, returning to her usual tone of voice. "Oh, SONIIIIC!" she playfully called. Tails shook his head and chuckled as he and Cream followed the hedgehog's quick pace.

"_This is gonna be an eventful flight..."_

* * *

The doors to the deck of Eggman's mobile humanoid base automatically opened as the man himself approached. There was no need for hand scanners or retinal ID up here; his defences were such that anyone who was on this floor, was permitted on this floor.

However, personnel identification was not the subject on the self-proclaimed genius's mind today. He slowly sat down on his command chair, where he could manually control and (when necessary) override the robot's actions and movement whenever Decoe and the like screwed up, which was often. But at the moment his trademark trio of robots were absent, checking on the engine and other essential machinery.

It was just as he began thoughtfully stroking his ridiculously long moustache when an unexpected voice called out to him. "Trouble, Doctor?" it said. The voice was extremely feminine and might even have sounded seductive if he ever had time for anything like that. Which he didn't. Eggman didn't bother trying to look for the source because he knew she could be anywhere in the room. After a few seconds of stalemate, Rouge spoke again. "Up here, egghead."

Only then did he look skyward to find the bat sitting cross-legged on a beam near the ceiling about thirty feet up. Eggman scowled. "If you keep breaking in here I'll kick you outta this base permanently!" he warned.

Not long after their return from space, Eggman had decided to retain the unspoken yet mutual deal they had developed while fighting the Metarex, which was that Rouge and Shadow could tag along with him so long as they assisted him occasionally and then stayed out of the way when he didn't need them. This arrangement suited all of them just fine, seeing as the pair of base-squatters would often go off for long periods to do their own things, leaving Eggman with more time to plan and less time having to punch a stress-relief toy.

Rouge leapt from the beam and gracefully glided downwards until she was level with his chair. She put on an obviously fake look of hurt and said "Ouch. I think I prefer your usual grunt of acknowledgement than a threat like that. And what's happened to our little game of 'Find the Pretty Bat'? I enjoy it when you get that bewildered look while you're looking for me, but this time you didn't even make an effort."

"I'm not here to please you! _You're_ the one in _my _territory!" Eggman grabbed a pencil and on a piece of paper in front of him started drawing what he hoped to Rouge would look like a next-generation robot, but what was actually more of an aimless doodle. This was simply an attempt to try and ignore her, but that was quite difficult when she was hovering right in front of his face.

"Come on, now. What's got a brainy guy like you all thoughtful? You know you can tell me anything." Eggman remained silent. "Well, that's alright. Suppose it's none of my business." Then, in a tone that suggested she might ask the same question every day, she said "Say, what's with that green stuff stored in the left shoulder of this thing?"

Eggman's insides burned. How the hell did she know about that? He hadn't seen her since he'd discovered it and he doubted that even those incompetent disasters that were his robotic assistants would be stupid enough to inform her of its presence. That left only the very plausible possibility that she had found it by herself while sneaking around and deduced that it was of interest to him. "Eh? It's nothing special." he said nonchalantly. Trying to drive the subject elsewhere, he said "Shouldn't you be hanging upside-down a tree somewhere? And where's Shadow?"

"What am I, his babysitter?" Rouge scoffed. "And yeah, I'm _sure_ it's nothing. After all, every evil genius keeps piles and piles of shining green rock that does absolutely nothing." She glanced down and gasped. "Oh my, Doctor, you've mastered the art of self-portrait!"

Eggman only now realised that in his growing anger, his hand had kept the pencil furiously scribbling on the paper. The result was a very large blob. "THAT'S IT!" he bellowed. "Listen to me, you little thief. I don't know how you found it, but from now on that area is off-limits! I'm going to heighten robot security so that even _your_ batty little face will be attacked on sight!"

Rouge shrugged. "Whatever you say. I'll just hang around in here for a while."

"No you won't!" Eggman rebutted. He wasn't going to take any chances. The six Chaos Emeralds were kept in this room and for Rouge every second spent within it was a second of figuring out a way to deactivate the protective lasers and steal them. "This room's off-limits too! I'm not going to have you swiping my Emeralds when I only have one left to get. I stand by my earlier decision; if I ever find in here again, you'll be chased out by an army of angry robots!"

Rouge dropped any hint of appeal in her voice. "Fine." she said roughly.

Eggman huffed, satisfied that she'd got the message. He had no doubt she would try and steal one or the other eventually (and with her skills he had no reason to discredit her chances of success), but he felt that even Rouge didn't know just how close he was to success. Still, he would have to keep a very close eye on her from now on. The Emeralds aside, he had no solid ideas on what the green rock substance could do; early analysis had demonstrated its chemical structure to be far more complex than he had first imagined. His intuition was screaming at him that there was something massively profitable to be gained from it. Whether financially or scientifically he didn't know, but his gut was one of the few things he trusted. Rouge could not be allowed to interfere. "Well, what did I just say?" he asked incredulously when he saw the bat still stood there. "Get out!"

"I was going to, but then I thought you might want some help with those guys." Rouge used her thumb to direct his gaze out of the huge glass window in front of him.

His motion radar was already bleeping but, despite the darkness outside, he didn't need it. The sight of a plane which was a constant thorn in his side roaring towards them was all too clear. "What?!" he yelped, actually jumping out of his chair. "What in blazes are _they_ doing here?!" He snatched up a nearby microphone and shouted into it. "Bocoe! Decoe! Get your metallic backsides up here this instant! We need to prepare for battle!" Rouge raised questioning eyebrows at him. "Fine, you can stay for now!" he growled. Because the truth was he was much more scared of the speeding plane's occupants ruining his plans than of a half-dressed bat.


	5. Chapter 5: Hard Bargain

Oh, you've _got_ to be kidding..." Amy groaned.

Tails had seen it too. The X-Tornado flew closer and closer to the place pinpointed by the detector until there was no denying it; the enormous machine they were approaching plastered with Eggman's insignia held the Mowarium. "Looks like Eggman beat us to the punch." he said slowly.

Sonic, still joyriding on the wing, spoke into a mouthpiece and his voice came over on the intercom. "I don't understand, Tails. Why would Eggman need it? I mean, even if there was someone he wanted to bring back, you need a piece of them like Cosmo's seed, right?"

Tails closed his eyes, trying to sort out the muddled thoughts floating around in his head. Could Eggman have truly advanced even further than he had? He quickly opened his eyes again when he remembered he was flying a plane. "I don't know, Sonic." Tails finally responded. "It's possible that -"

He never finished his sentence because at that moment there was a series of almighty screeching noises as Eggman's base transformed. Tails and his party soon saw that it had been in a sort of compacted state when it began to straighten out like a snake. The supporting legs stretched upwards, arms shot out of its sides and a head rose from the main body.

"A robot shaped like a human, eh?" Amy said drolly. "How original."

Tails was about to point out that such a robot was not only fully mobile, but also possessed excellent potential for a well-balanced weapons system when he realised it would be praising his arch-nemesis. "If we get any closer he'll almost certainly start attacking us. I don't want a fight, so I'm gonna land here." Instantly wails of protest vibrated in his ears. He held up a hand to stop them. "I know he might attack anyway but Eggman's got a bad habit of letting his ego take over, which makes him quick to boast about things before he proves them. We can use that to our advantage; I _have_ to know if he's working on regeneration too."

The X-Tornado had just touched down when Cream, sat directly behind the twin-tailed pilot, stretched over and pointed at something. "Tails look! Your detector's responding again!"

He checked it and saw that they were now close enough for the radar to deduce the exact location of the Mowarium inside the robot. He breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing it was all stashed in one place. "Ok guys, it's all inside that left shoulder." He jabbed a finger in the direction of the joint on the hundred feet tall goliath. He pressed a button to open the cockpit and he plus his passengers jumped out.

Sonic hopped down from the wing and whistled impatiently. "Come on egghead, send down your TV robot or something." Since the din of its transformation, the humanoid and its occupants had been disturbingly quiet. Tails was just starting to get worried when, as Sonic had predicted, Bokkun came flying unsteadily towards them, hefting a blue and orange television.

They all instinctively backed off from the potentially explosive device. Bokkun let out a frustrated growl (quite an achievement for his voice) and almost dropped his payload; such was its weight for his tiny frame. "It's not gonna blow up on ya or anything! I'm fed up of everyone running away from me!" he moaned indignantly. Then he seemed to see something which completely changed his attitude. "I, uh – um – hi guys! Er...missed you?" He found the four of them staring at him. He ignored three and hovered closer. "Hi Cream! I've missed you especially!" Amy only had time to snicker before the TV finally flicked on. Eggman's large face filled the screen.

"Bokkun you idiot! _You're_ supposed to turn it on! Put me down before you drop my incredible face on the floor!" Bokkun grumbled and moved to the X-Tornado, placing it on the wing where it was at comfortable head height. "Now, where's that brainy fox?"

Tails stepped in front of the monitor. "I'm here, Eggman."

"Ah, Tails! Why the landing? Our usual opening exchange is a barrage of missiles aimed at the other's latest contraption!"

Tails couldn't help but smile. "True, but somehow we always miss each other. Tonight I only want to see if we can come to an agreement on something. Nice colour scheme, by the way." he remarked, tapping the television's rim.

"Festive, don't you think? The blue and orange remind me of how much I dislike you and that pesky hedgehog. It drives me to do one better." Then Eggman's expression turned serious. "Straight to business now, I have no time for small talk. What's made you come out here if you didn't want to attack me? I mean you could have at least waited until tomorrow; a genius needs his rest!"

Sonic jostled in next to Tails so that Eggman could see him too and took the words right out of Tails' mouth. "This might sound a bit crazy Doctor, but we weren't expecting to see you here as much as you weren't expecting us!"

"What?!" Eggman obviously didn't believe them. "I suppose you all just decided to fly around in the middle nowhere for the fun of it! I mean, you could have come up with a better lie than that!"

"It's true, Eggman!" Tails insisted.

Then a voice off-screen on Eggman's end said "I've gotta say, I actually think they might be telling the truth."

Sonic and Tails exchanged a confused look before Rouge pushed in next to Eggman. "I never said you could butt in, you damned bat!" Eggman yelled. "But while you're here, do go on. What makes you think these idiots aren't lying through their teeth?"

"Because Knuckles isn't with them." Rouge answered simply. The pair of best friends saw Eggman stop to consider. "Even though they didn't attack, I expect they'd have brought that red echidna if they knew they were going to run into you, Doctor." Rouge went on.

Sonic laughed. "I think you need to rethink your choice of allies Eggman! Cheers Rouge, we wouldn't have noticed that as a reason for him to believe us!"

"Trust you to notice Knuckles is missing." Tails said with a smirk.

"Now now Tails, we can't get too familiar, we're supposed to be on opposite sides." But he saw her wink.

Eggman, naturally irked at being both outsmarted and ganged up on, spoke next through gritted teeth. "That's right Rouge, we're meant to be on the same side. So why are you helping _them_?! And just because that gullible hothead didn't decide to join you on your supposed aerial holiday doesn't explain everything! Tails said before he wanted to make some sort of deal with me. Therefore he knew I was here!"

"I only knew I wanted to make a deal when I saw your base." Tails said.

Eggman exploded. "ENOUGH GUESSING GAMES! Explain yourself!"

Tails thought for a moment, trying to think of the best way to summarise his requirements without giving too much away. "Long story short here, Eggman. I've been looking for something rare for a while but had no way to find it, so I built a detector to show me where I could obtain some. I only finished that radar today and it showed me this location, so Sonic, Amy, Cream and I came to check it out. We saw your base here and that's when I knew I wanted to make an arrangement." he finished.

A now much calmer looking Eggman nodded. "Well, that makes much more sense. Why didn't you tell me that in the first place, you fool?" A hint of a smile crept onto his face. "However, we still have a problem. Although I can see you have no reason to lie to me, I'm afraid I have to disappoint. Usually I'm all ears for a fair deal, but you'll _never_ persuade me to hand over my Chaos Emeralds, no matter what you offer in return! Not when only the final one evades me!"

"Huh?" Sonic and Tails voiced in unison. The same conclusion hit them simultaneously and Sonic voiced it. "Wait, you have _six_ Chaos Emeralds?!"

"Hmm...I don't think that's what they came here for, Doctor." Rouge stated as neutrally as she could without laughing at a man with an IQ of 300 having just blabbed critical information to his enemies.

Eggman let his face fall and bang on the desk in front of him. Even a facepalm wouldn't do his mistake justice. "Me and my big mouth..." Tails heard him mutter. The enormous man raised his face to the screen again. "Well then why on Mobius _are_ you here? What do I have that's so useful to you freaks besides these beauties?" Eggman rotated his camera a full 180 degrees to show the protected Emeralds for a few seconds before returning it to Rouge and himself.

Tails ignored the attempted display of power and decided he might as well come clean out with it. "We need your Mowarium." he said blandly.

"My Mo-what?" For the first time in his life Tails saw Eggman truly baffled. "I hope that's not an essential body part!"

Tails allowed himself to relax ever so slightly and Sonic once again confirmed what Eggman had practically told them. "See, Tails? He doesn't even know its name, never mind what it can be used for. He must have just found it."

Eggman banged his fist on his desk. "I'm sick and tired of being confused today! If you don't start making sense right now, I'll blow you all apart where you stand!"

"Mowarium, Eggman. It's a rocky substance, usually emits a greenish glow." Tails clarified. He instantly saw the Doctor's face clear in understanding.

"So _that's_ what that is." Eggman hummed, mostly to himself. After a moment of consideration, he turned his attention back to his rival. "You know, fox boy, I may be up for a nice little trade yet. However, I'm sure you understand I can't simply let it go without knowing what it can do and why your dirty paws want it so badly."

Tails grimaced. He couldn't afford to give Eggman that kind of knowledge; the long term effects could be disastrous. "I can't tell you that, Eggman." he said with an air of finality.

"Well you'd better have something damn good to offer in return!" Eggman said sharply.

Tails' mind went blank and he knew he was in deep trouble. In Eggman's mind he nothing to trade, no information to barter and therefore no reason to be here. "_I have to think of something! This is for Cosmo!"_

He saw Eggman's mouth about to deliver a probable death sentence when for some reason Rouge saved him. She tapped Eggman's shoulder and pointed at something. Even behind the fat man's glasses Tails could tell his eyes had lit up and suddenly the pair began talking in hushed voices to each other.

Tails had no idea what they were going on about, but he recognised an opportunity to do the same and dragged Sonic off-screen. "Listen Sonic, I have a plan but don't interrupt, we don't have much time." Sonic nodded a signal for him to continue. "I'm gonna go for broke and tell Eggman why we need the Mowarium." Of course Sonic then tried to intervene but Tails physically clamped a hand over his mouth and spoke even more quietly into his ear. "I know it's risky, but I don't think I can make up something convincing enough and it'll definitely keep him interested while _you_ use the cover of darkness to approach his base. Break into one of the entrances on the feet and climb to the left shoulder where the Mowarium is. On the way up, wreck the legs completely so he can't pursue us afterwards. See the shoulders? I've seen him use that design before and they're detachable. When you break into the room with the Mowarium, there should be a control panel to detach the shoulder entirely from the body. Do your best to fly it back to my house while Amy, Cream and I leg it to the X-Tornado and get the hell out of here. Understood?"

Sonic raised his eyebrows, as impressed as ever at the fox's prowess at coming up with clever plans in stressful situations. He removed Tails' hand from his mouth and replied "Got it."

Tails returned to the TV alone and hoped Eggman would be too excited about his own discovery to notice Sonic's absence. He and Rouge finished speaking a few seconds later. Tails opened his mouth to start the distraction, but Eggman spoke first. "Alright Tails, I can see you do indeed have something of use to me. It's a straight up trade; my Mowarium for your Chaos Emerald!"

"What?!" Tails was half glad that Eggman was doing his job for him by making a situation, but this caught him completely off guard. "My Chaos Emerald? I don't have one!"

Eggman's temper began to boil again. "Don't lie to me Tails! You're lucky I'm even considering giving you what you want! Rouge pointed out that my Emerald radar was going nuts and the signal's coming from one of you!"

Tails felt a flicker of his own anger bubble but he forced it down. "I'm telling you we don't have the last Emerald! Even if we did, do you really think I'd consider giving it to you?! You'd just use the huge power of all seven to take the Mowarium back off us!"

"Well then we have nothing more to discuss!" Eggman began pushing buttons madly on a console. "I'll bury you and take it myself!"

"WAIT!" Tails screamed in desperation. He made such a noise that Rouge jumped and even Eggman froze, his thumb hovering over a big red button that undoubtedly fired something unsavoury. "What if – what if I told you why we needed the Mowarium?"

Eggman scowled but the kitsune could tell he was interested. "This is your last chance, Tails." Eggman warned him calmly. "Use it wisely."

Tails took a deep breath, taking every opportunity to stall for time. Sonic had to be close by now but he daren't so much as glance away from the screen for fear that Eggman would finally notice something was wrong. "Eggman, we need your Mowarium because it's the most vital part of a process I'm working on to bring back Cosmo."

His shock tactic worked. "Cosmo?! Now _that's_ a name I haven't heard in a while..." Tails allowed Eggman to draw out his own silence as he considered the implications of the fox's words. "So what you're saying is, this Mowarium is a part of some regeneration process?" Tails nodded. "But how? You can't just make someone appear out of thin air!"

"The seed." Tails simply said. He knew those two words were all he could manage without the tears forming in his eyes anyway.

"Ahhhh." Eggman's smile became so wide it was scary. "Impressive Tails, most impressive! I've always wanted to dabble in regeneration science myself, but I never really had a reason to. However, now that I possess such an important piece..." Tails could almost see the cogs working away in Eggman's brain, already producing schemes which would certainly result in calamity for everyone else.

"Well, Eggman?" Tails said loudly, interrupting the God knows what goings on in the man's head. "I've told you why I need it. Now, will you co-operate?"

Eggman thought for a moment, and then consulted with Rouge. This suited Tails fine, seeing as Sonic was taking a worryingly long time. He obviously couldn't just make a dash for it or else Eggman would have enough time to set up defences, but still...

Eggman turned back to the screen. "Well, I wanted to just blow you up and be done with it, but Rouge has saved you again by reminding me that I said I would strike up some sort of deal if you told me your intentions. I can't be caught telling outright lies, can I? Especially when your dead girlfriend is involved." It took all of Tails' willpower not to put his fist through the screen as he felt a wave of inner agony for Cosmo and a rush of pure hatred for his enemy. But again he forced his emotions away. "So I've decided on a compromise. It's my one and only offer, so listen good you runt. I'm extending an invitation for you to come and visit my lovely base, in which we'll build the regeneration machine together. You get the plant girl back; my appetite for this experimental science is sated. Everyone wins."

Yeah right. Even if Tails believed that Eggman wouldn't double cross him (which he didn't), there was no way he was going to allow such a corrupt and evil person have any involvement with the return of the girl he loved. But the kitsune pretended to consider it. "How do I know you won't capture me and steal my technology when we've finished?" he asked.

"A valid question." came Eggman's response. "As collateral, I'll give you five Chaos Emeralds before we start."

That was when Tails realised just how horrific Eggman's plans were. The evil genius had spent the best part of half a year collecting the six he had now, so for him to give away five without a second thought...the man wanted the technology for more than just his 'scientific appetite'. Tails was sure of it. "Only five?" he said, trying to buy yet more time. "Why not all six?"

"I'm no fool, Tails! No matter how much you deny it, I _know_ you have that last Emerald! My radar does not lie, unlike you!"

"I'm telling you -" Tails began.

"YES YOU DO! If I give you six, then _you'll _have all seven! I'm not having that irritating blue hedgehog go all super on me and – hang on...where'd Sonic go?!"

Then, with ridiculously good timing, the explosions began. Alarms blared from Eggman's base and robots rushed out everywhere, but it was far too late. The legs of the robotic base were already falling apart as Sonic annihilated them from the inside. There was a huge jolt from Eggman's end of the transmission and Tails' TV went blank.

"Amy! Cream! Come on, we've gotta get out of here now!" he shouted above the crashes and explosions. The pair of girls who'd been silent during the two genius' conversation had no idea why Eggman's base was suddenly burning itself to the ground, but Tails was grateful when they asked no questions and jumped into the X-Tornado. The pilot himself leapt in and took off faster than he ever had in his life.

He quickly explained to the girls what the plan had been, leading to cheers of praise from Amy about her beloved hedgehog's bravery. But Tails wasn't listening. He chanced a look back and grinned when he saw a huge orb flying in pursuit some distance behind them. "That's the way to do it, Sonic!"


	6. Chapter 6: To Create Life

Rouge hid in shadows behind a pillar. The Master Emerald's ominous glow illuminated everything slightly in the dawn's dim light, but for once that was not her target. Instead her aim was simply to have a chat with its guardian; after sneaking up on him, of course. Knuckles was stood to attention and seemed to be alert for someone awake at five in the morning, but she would be willing to bet a few priceless gems that he'd have no idea until she wanted him to.

She smoothly slipped out from behind the pillar and practically waltzed over to his rear, her high-heeled shoes somehow making no noise whatsoever on the stony ground. Rouge now stood right behind him, trying not to laugh at his ignorance. She positioned a foot between his legs and violently swung it in a clockwise arc, taking out the echidna's right leg. He crashed to the ground.

Knuckles sprang back up and instantly threw a right hook as he twisted around, intending to ruin the face of his assailant – but there was no-one there. "Come out and face me!" he roared. "A real man fights head-on, not with cheap shots!"

"Guess that counts me out, then." Rouge said, now atop the Master Emerald.

"Oh, for – not _you_! Can't you say hello like a normal person?!" Knuckles wasn't surprised she had managed to trick him, but it still infuriated him that she ran rings around him more often than not.

Rouge smirked as she sat down on the Emerald. "I was just showing you that if I wanted I could knock you out and have it away with your big gem while you're flat on the floor. Looks like I'm still the best, Knucky!"

Oh, how he hated that nickname. And she knew it. "Come down from there and say that!" he yelled. "In fact, come down anyway! Do you have any idea how long it took me to reassemble all those shards?! Get off the Master Emerald!"

Rouge rolled her eyes and leapt like an acrobat from the Emerald, landing in front of Knuckles. "Sor-ry!" she said sarcastically. "Luckily for you, I'm not interested in what you're doing a very bad job of guarding. Today I'd like something different."

Knuckles gave her a dubious look. "Does it involve shiny things mysteriously entering your pockets?"

"Well yes, but -"

"Then it's no different." Knuckles said smugly. "You always want the same -"

Rouge interrupted him back. "Shut that mouth and listen." she said assertively. "I don't know how well informed you are out on this little island, so you might not have heard that last night Tails found the right material to bring back Cosmo." She decided to leave out the part about Eggman's base fiasco.

Knuckles shrugged. "Good for him. I mean, that girl was nice enough, but what's that got to do with me?"

"It just so happens that this substance would look very nice on me when integrated into a few bits of jewellery." she hinted.

"Why are you telling me this?" Knuckles still failed to see her point. "Aren't you afraid I'll go and tell Tails you're planning to steal it?"

"Oh, you idiot..." she sighed. "I want _you_ to get it for me, knucklehead!"

"What?!" Knuckles scoffed. "So you not only think that I'd do something for you, but also that I'd deliberately take away something Tails cares about so much? And you think _I'm_ the idiot?!" He laughed. "Why don't you just go and get it yourself, batty?"

Rouge scowled but didn't lose her temper. "You won't be ruining his life, believe me there's absolutely loads of the stuff. All I need is a handful of it. As for why I need you...well, if I know Tails, he'll be working non-stop on that machine until it's finished and won't let the material out of his sight. Sonic will likely be there too, so I just need a friendly face to visit the fox's house, discreetly take a smidgen and hand it to me out in his back garden."

Knuckles paused in thought. "I'll still be betraying his trust." he said, although he sounded less certain now.

"I _promise_ there'll still be more than enough for him to use." she assured him.

"Pfft. Since when did _you_ keep promises?"

Rouge recognised a chance to deliver the figurative crowning blow. She slowly walked towards him and stopped right in front of his face, their noses almost touching. "I'll owe you a favour..." she said flirtatiously.

Knuckles' eyes widened but he did not pull away from her striking gaze. "Wh-what sort of favour?"

Rouge smiled at him. "Anything you like, within reason. As long as it's..._consensual_ to both of us, then yes, _anything_."

Knuckles gave up; there was no way he could refuse her when she was like this. "Fine." he said more indifferently than he felt. "What's this stuff look like?"

"There's a good echidna." She tapped his nose playfully, something which would earn anyone else an instant knuckle sandwich, but she knew he would never hit her unless she started a fight. "It glows green, you really can't miss it. You'd better get over there now, or Tails will have already finished! I'll be waiting!" She winked and before Knuckles could say anything, Rouge had spread her wings and swooped out of sight.

"Not so fast, woman! I'm coming!"

* * *

Shadow sighed, something he rarely did because it gave away signs of tiredness and weakness to others. But here, on this cliff and on his own, he figured it was alright to do so. He was completely fed up; he had no problem admitting that to himself. Spending an entire month doing nothing of interest would get anyone riled up.

Perhaps it was time he returned to the Doctor. Shadow had not, of course, informed the genius that when he left, he was never planning to come back. The adventures and challenges he'd faced while fighting the Metarex had been more fun to him than he had allowed anyone to realise, so upon their return to Mobius the idea of keeping their little clique of the hedgehog, the thief and the madman had at first been appealing.

But gradually Shadow had found himself being ordered around by Eggman like a common soldier. Not only that, but the tasks themselves were morally wrong. Now that Sonic and the Doctor had no common enemy, Eggman was back to making the people of Mobius suffer for his own end, which was predictably the retrieval of the Chaos Emeralds. "_I may not show my emotions to everyone else, but that does not make me evil._" he had thought. "_I won't try to stop the Doctor, but I won't help him anymore." _And so he had left.

However, Shadow was now on the cusp of changing his mind yet again. Ever since he had abandoned the robotic world of Eggman's creations, he'd realised he had no purpose. The very reason he'd been created by the man's grandfather in the first place was to follow orders; by himself, he had no particular goals. He'd thought perhaps a little time to himself would somehow pull back a metaphorical curtain in his mind to reveal a long hidden, ultimate calling in life. But obviously not.

Yes, he would go back to the Doctor. It didn't matter how many Emeralds he had collected or what he planned to do next. "_I'll just have to improvise if he asks me where I've been. I'll return and act like I never planned to leave..."_

* * *

This was it. It was finally ready.

Tails had completed the final part and tested a few more regular plants against the radio waves, just to be sure. Now everything was finally in place. "Sonic, go wake Amy and Cream." the fox said. The two girls had slept in Tails' house while they waited for him to finish the machine, but wanted to be there during the actual process. Sonic nodded and dashed out of the lab.

Knuckles poked his head into the room. "D'you want me to fetch those last bits of the Mo-whatsitsname?"

"That'd be great, thanks Knuckles." The echidna had turned up about an hour ago asking how things were going. Tails had initially thought his arrival this early in the morning to be a little strange, but Tails wasn't one to refuse a helping hand, especially at such a critical time. He'd quickly explained how close he was to success before tasking Knuckles with what up to then had been Sonic's job; transporting the Mowarium bit by bit from the stolen shoulder joint into his workshop. Sonic had then helped with what he could regarding the completion of the final component.

Tails knew it was time to put Cosmo in the central chamber. He picked up the plant as though it were made of something which air could degrade and carried it from the observation room into the place where it was all going to happen. He set her down and gently kissed the beautiful flower. "Not long now, Cosmo." he quietly assured her. Tails was glad in a way that no-one was in the immediate vicinity to hear him talking to a plant, but in another way he wouldn't really have cared if they had; very soon he'd be talking to her for real. And then he would hear her sweet voice and dwell in her warm embrace again...

"Here they are, buddy!" Sonic's return with Amy and Cream brought him back to a serious attitude – he wasn't there yet.

He walked back into the observation room to update the girls. "Amy, Cream, I know this might sound harsh but I'm gonna need you both to stay where you are and touch nothing when we begin." Tails told them sternly. "This can't go wrong. I won't let it."

Amy sucked on her lip, obviously biting back a retort. Cream saw this and grabbed her hand. "If that's what it takes to bring back Cosmo, then we'll do it! Won't we, Amy?" An unusually commanding tone had entered her voice.

After a few seconds of everyone staring at her Amy's body sagged in defeat. "Of course we will Tails. I know how much this means to you."

Tails smiled. "Thanks. So Sonic, do you -"

"HERE IT IS!" Knuckles yelled far too loudly as he carried the rest of the Mowarium into the lab.

Tails was so startled he actually jumped. "Geez, Knuckles...what's with all the noise? I thought Eggman had staged an invasion to steal it back or something!"

"I'm just sayin', I've got it! Yeah, there it is, that's all of it, don't worry, none missing or anything, it's all there...and stuff..." he trailed off.

"Are you...alright?" Amy asked, completely confused by his babbling.

"Yeah, you were out there quite a long time." Tails observed.

"Oh yeah, everything's fine, no trouble when I went to get it, don't worry, it didn't walk off on its own or anything, it's all there...and stuff..."

Then Sonic voiced what everyone was thinking. "What the hell's wrong with you?! You're fidgeting more than I would at red lights!"

Knuckles finally seemed to get a grip. "Look, can we just get on with this?" He dropped the Mowarium with the rest of it near the delivery tube.

"Best idea you've ever had." Tails said, dismissing the echidna's shiftiness. He couldn't waste time now. "Ok, does everyone remember what they're doing?"

Sonic performed his classic wink and thumbs-up combination. "I'm gonna watch the energy levels like a hawk to make sure it doesn't go bang!"

"It's my job to check the protective glass doesn't develop any cracks or holes that could allow the radio waves to reach us." Knuckles quoted his instructions almost word for word.

"You're going to deliver more Mowarium as it decomposes in the machine using the tube, Tails!" Cream squealed, answering for the kitsune.

"And _we're_ going to stand here doing absolutely nothing." Amy finished, smiling as she recognised the funnier side to her and Cream's role.

Tails nodded his approval. "Well, one way or another this'll all be over in a few minutes." He took a breath to compose himself. "Now let's bring back Cosmo!"

He hit the start button so hard it almost broke. For a shocking moment Tails thought he actually had, but then low humming noises sounded in their ears as his masterpiece started up. The first minute was utterly anticlimactic due to how long it took for the correct concentration of radio waves to be reached. It didn't take too long, however, before things started livening up. Tails watched as each component began to do its job, slowly performing every step in order to eventually reach the final, all important part.

The moment he saw that the entire machine was involved, Tails started putting Mowarium into the delivery tube. "How are we looking guys?" he called to his friends.

"No problems here." Knuckles replied.

Sonic sounded more uncertain. "The energy levels are a bit higher than you expected, but I think we're alright for now, at least."

"Keep me informed!" Tails shouted above the large amount of noise his creation was now making. He kept stuffing Mowarium into the tube; there was nothing elegant about the way he was doing it, but it didn't need to be. All that mattered was that more green rock had to go in, more and more...

Sonic suddenly yelped. "Tails! The energy's gone nuts! It's way too high, we have to stop!"

"NO!" Tails yelled ferociously, his hands still working. "We won't get a second chance, we've gotta see this through!"

"But it might blow up! We could be goners!"

"I DON'T CARE!" By this point Tails felt like an animal with only one instinct; to be with the girl he loved. What happened to him was inconsequential. "IF COSMO DIES FOR GOOD, THEN I DIE WITH HER!"

* * *

The entire world was shaking.

Cosmo had no idea how long she had been chasing Tails. She was absolutely exhausted, but it didn't matter; she wasn't going to give up until she could hold him and convince him to finally tell her why he was so upset.

Just when it had seemed like he would always be out of reach, the world seemed to make a decision to help her, if in a very unsettling manner. The ground had given an almighty lurch, causing the kitsune to lose his balance and crash to the floor. Somehow Cosmo had managed to keep her feet before giving Tails no chance to recover by literally diving on top of him. For a few moments they lay there like that, panting, and it was then that Cosmo noticed that the ground's shaking hadn't stopped. In fact it only became stronger and quickly developed into a powerful earthquake.

Tails soon caught his breath and attempted to wriggle free from underneath her but Cosmo repositioned herself to sit on his struggling legs and pin him arms down. "Let me go!" he shouted up at her. "You don't understand!"

"Then explain, I'm begging you! Don't bottle up your feelings, share them with me! That's all I want!" she pleaded.

A pained look crossed Tails' face. "What's happening? Why is the ground shaking?" But he sounded far too in control to fear only the quake. Cosmo could tell he was trying to change the subject.

"I don't know what's happening! I don't know and I don't care!" Tails blinked in surprise, but this was entirely true. She had spent far too long in this ridiculous place. "All I care about is _you_, Tails! It doesn't matter to me if this is the end of the world as long as our spirits remain together!" Her voice had at first been as sure and firm as steel, but it began to crack as she poured out her soul to the fox. "But j-just in case we can n-never see each other again, p-please tell me..." She couldn't stop the tears rolling down her cheeks and her voice stalled. "Please t-tell me..." She couldn't get the words out. Even trying to say it tore at her insides. But she had to know.

Cosmo forced herself to look him in his sky blue eyes and sobbed, "PLEASE TAILS, TELL ME WHY YOU DON'T LOVE ME BACK!"

There. She'd said it. Every part of her body suddenly seemed to lose the will to live. Her hands released his arms and her head collapsed onto his neck, eyes crying into his soft fur. If Tails fled now, she wouldn't stop him. But she also feared that she would never get up. If he ran, she wanted the rumbling ground to swallow her whole and kill her; staying alive would be much, much worse.

But he didn't run. Despite the total chaos around them, Tails wrapped his arms around her waist to prevent them from being separated, the first time he had voluntarily touched her at all. He pressed his mouth against her ear and spoke. "I-I'm so sorry Cosmo...please let me explain."

She lifted her head. A glimmer of hope raced through her. She was still crying and hiccupping, but in a far more controlled manner. Cosmo raised a hand to his face and stroked his cheek, a silent signal for him to continue.

"I might as well tell you this now. You're right Cosmo, I don't love you." Instantly Cosmo felt her heart break. The expression had always sounded a bit too dramatic to her, but now she understood; her chest truly felt as though someone was wrenching it in two. The agony must have shown on her face because Tails gripped her waist harder. "No, listen to me. You shouldn't be in love with me, either."

"W-what?" Cosmo was still too heartbroken to form proper sentences.

"I wasn't sure myself at first, but after these months of thinking I'm positive. Cosmo, I'm not who you think I am."

Cosmo finally regained her voice as curiosity beat the shock. "Y-yes you are! You're Tails. You're _my _Tails! You might not love me, but I will _always_ love you!" She started sobbing again – the raw despair overwhelmed her.

"That's where you're wrong. I am Tails, but I'm not _your_ Tails. I'm not the Tails you fell in love with. See how calm I am? Would the Tails you know be so placid when a girl told him he loved her with the apocalypse going on in the background?" He did sound calm, but he now had to shout to be heard; the roar of the earthquake was so great it did indeed seem like doomsday had arrived.

"T-then who are you? Are you saying the entire time we've lived here has been a lie?!" Cosmo was more confused than she had ever been in her life, because she knew that this 'Tails' was correct. The boy she loved would be trying to protect and comfort her, not smash her soul into thousands of pieces. For the first time she allowed herself to think that this was not the real Tails, that the true fox may still be out there, wanting to be with her as well...

"I cannot be one hundred percent sure, but I have a theory. I believe that -" But 'Tails' never finished his sentence. The quake escalated into something so ferocious that they were torn apart.

Cosmo landed about twenty feet away and as everything began turning white, she realised that this was probably the end of her life. "_I can't die like this! Not again!" _her mind reeled. Her body felt like it was being pulled backwards by an immense force and she knew she was going to die. Her only consolation was that the 'Tails' she had spent the last months with was not the real one. She just knew it. Cosmo screamed what she believed would be her final words, willing for some unearthly power to carry them to the true kitsune. "I LOVE YOU TAILS!"

And then the world exploded.


	7. Chapter 7: Blind Luck

Dr. Eggman sat in his command chair specially designed with his incredible girth in mind. His right foot tapped rhythmically on the floor, a sign of his growing impatience. His left was doing more of a spastic dance as it thudded randomly against the metal. This was a much more obvious sign that he was seriously annoyed about how a dumb hedgehog and a weakling fox had tricked him. Again.

Although Eggman knew he probably looked like a psychotic double bass player, he didn't really care. Right now he was waiting for Bocoe and Decoe to finish the task he'd set them. With no way to move his base since Sonic had blown the legs off, he had at first contemplated abandoning the whole thing and flying back to his headquarters with the Chaos Emeralds using the other mobile shoulder joint. He then, however, came up with an idea to utilise the shoulder in a different way. Instead of spending days slogging back to his HQ in a cramped sphere or possibly weeks building new legs with what little materials he had on hand, he could simply install a weapons system into the shoulder and then assault Tails' house; a relatively easy task. Well, easy for him, but judging by the sheer amount of time it was taking, something of seemingly mind-boggling difficulty for the pair of buffoons to whom he'd appointed the job.

The fat man grumbled impatiently to himself and on a whim grabbed a nearby microphone. "What's taking so long?! Have you discovered a bag of white powder and sniffed it or something?!" Inaudible replies were fed into Eggman's ear. "Huh? Why don't _I _do it? That'd better be a very bad joke! It's only twenty machine guns, fifteen missile launchers, ten cannons, five laser beams and a bacon sandwich maker! Now hurry it up!" No sooner had he slammed down the microphone when he heard the entry doors behind him slide open. "What did I tell you about coming in here you ignorant bat?!"

He received no immediate reply, instead hearing only a masculine "Hmph!" which sounded half way between a laugh and a scoff. Eggman swivelled round on his chair and was pleasantly surprised to see a black hedgehog stood in front of him. The hedgehog smirked. "Expecting someone else?"

"Ah, Shadow! My apologies, I thought Rouge was trying to steal the Chaos Emeralds again. I have endeavoured to obtain two more since you last left!"

"So now you have six..." Shadow confirmed it with his own eyes. "Tell me Doctor, if you wield such power, why is half of this place missing?"

Eggman groaned. "Unfortunately I let my guard down." He explained in detail how he had found an unknown green rock substance, that Tails had built a detector to find the same thing and why the fox wanted to possess it. "He believes he can make a regeneration machine to bring back Cosmo." He expected Shadow to at least show a flicker of surprise or recognition, but the red-streaked hedgehog's face remained impassive. "In my eagerness to make a deal for the last Emerald, I failed to notice that Sonic had vanished." he continued. "By the time I'd realised, it was too late. That damned weasel destroyed the legs so I couldn't pursue them and took off with the Mowarium."

"Perhaps you should take a lesson from Rouge and not store your valuables in something that itself can be stolen." Shadow commented.

"Perhaps you're right. However, don't think that nothing good has come out of this. In order to buy time for Sonic, Tails had to tell me why he needed the Mowarium. That was his mistake; believe me, I have ideas of my own when I take it back."

"You don't think he was lying?"

Eggman grinned. "I thought he may have been at first, but think about it – Tails cared a hell of a lot about that plant girl. It would be far too painful for him to even suggest that he could bring her back unless he truly believed that he could."

Shadow nodded. "Fair point. But you _do_ think he has the last Chaos Emerald?"

"Oh yes, he was lying about that, I'm sure of it. He denied it quite convincingly, but any doubt in my mind was removed when the Emerald radar's response faded significantly after their escape. Honestly, he must think I'm a fool! But _he_ is the fool! As we speak my minions are arming the other shoulder with weaponry. Then we'll fly merrily over at night to ambush him and smash his sorry house to pieces!"

Suddenly Shadow smiled. "No need, Doctor."

"Hm? What do you mean?" Shadow pointed out of the huge window at a cloud of smoke billowing in the far distance. "What?! Is that...Tails' house?!"

"Most certainly. His regeneration attempt has likely failed." Shadow noticed Eggman's puzzled face. "What is it? You're not feeling sympathy for him are you?" he mocked.

"Why would I feel sorry for that two-tailed thief?! No, it's just that firstly I had no idea he was so close to completing his machine."

"It obviously _wasn't_ complete." Shadow pointed out.

"You know what I mean!" Eggman snapped. "The other thing that's bothering me is the fact that he actually failed. As much as I hate to admit it, Tails rarely goes wrong when it comes to machinery and like I said before, that girl meant everything to him; there's no way he would try it until he was absolutely sure it would work. My guess is that he's got no second chance now, because it's improbable that the plant survived the explosion. He must have known that..."

Shadow shrugged indifferently. "Maybe desperation got the better of him."

Eggman paused thoughtfully and nodded. "Something like that." He shook his head to clear it and decided to focus on the benefits this provided for him. "Well, he's made it very easy for us to stroll in, hasn't he? Forget the weapons, we'll fly over there now and take the Emerald! Not only that, I'll see if I can discover any fragments of destroyed Mowarium near his house so I can synthesise more in my lab!"

Shadow's smile widened. "I think the deal just got even sweeter, Doctor." He pointed again at an unconscious figure lying on the ground some distance away from the smoke.

"Oh, this gets better and better! Luck's on our side today! The explosion must have blasted him out of the house! You know, I think we'll hold a ransom while we're at it! Shadow, go fetch that idiot off the floor and bring him back here while I look for the Emerald! HOOHAHAHAHAHA!"

* * *

"_Ugh...what happened? Where am I?" _Tails groggily opened his eyes. Everything was blurry and his mind was clouded. Indistinct voices talked in hushed tones, but he didn't know where they were coming from or who was making them; he was too out of it to understand. He tried to remember what had happened. "_I'd made a machine. Something to do with green rocks? And an explosion while trying to bring back Cosmo..."_

"COSMO!" he yelled as he shot bolt upright from the bed he was lying on. Everything rushed back into his brain. He had started the regeneration process, but something went wrong and the whole thing had overloaded. His vision also rapidly returned in sharp focus to see Sonic and Knuckles stood there looking terrified, probably because of his sudden shouting.

"Whoa, Tails! You gave us a shock there!" Sonic said after he'd recovered. "You've been out for quite a while, buddy; you were closest to the explosion." he explained. "Amy's taken Cream back to her house and we've been looking after you."

"Alright Tails, we've got some bad news, some good news and some more good news." Knuckles said with an air of uncharacteristic informality. Tails, on the verge of tears due to his failure, didn't really care but he wasn't given a choice to hear it. "The bad news is, as you might have expected, your workshop's been completely destroyed. But have you noticed that you're lying in your own bed? The good news is the explosion wasn't big enough to damage any part of the rest of your house!"

Tails bit his lip but couldn't stop the sobs that escaped his mouth. Then he gave up on holding back and let everything out at once, which turned out to be a lot. He collapsed back onto the bed, crying harder than he could ever remember doing. Knuckles gave him a look of terrible confusion. "What's wrong? I said it _didn't_ blow up your house!"

"W-why should I c-care?" Tails managed between his moans of despair. "I w-wish the explosion had k-killed _me..._"

Knuckles looked as though he was going to give an insensitive response so Sonic gripped one of the echidna's namesakes hard to stop him. He knelt by Tails' bed and gently took one of his hands. "Don't say that, buddy." he said softly. "Why would you want that?"

"D-don't you see? There's no way s-she c-could have survived the explosion...n-now even her f-flower is dead..." He couldn't take the guilt anymore and screamed what was eating him alive. "I KILLED COSMO! AGAIN!" He let out what could only be described as a howl of pure agony. Tails knew he would never get over this. No amount of time or honeyed words would ever allow him to forget it, not for one second.

"Ah, now this is where that piece of _more_ good news comes into play!" Sonic said happily.

Tails violently shook his head, even though by now it was buried in his pillow. "I d-don't care." his muffled voice sobbed quietly. "P-please kill me too...I n-need to be with her!"

"We're not going to assist in your unnecessary suicide that isn't happening in the first place." Knuckles said firmly.

Sonic nodded. Then, as though he were teasing a kid with a possible trip to a sweets shop, he said, "Besides, we've got a surprise for you!"

Tails looked up at him in disbelief. "How c-can you be s-so happy at a time like this? I d-don't care what surprise you have!"

"Believe me, you'll like this one." Sonic replied simply.

Knuckles cut in before Tails could retort. "Listen, we're gonna show you whether you want to see it or not, so we can do this the easy way..." He smacked his fists together. "...or the hard way."

"What Knuckles _actually_ means," Sonic emphasised while giving the echidna an annoyed look, "is you can come with us to your guest bedroom or we'll carry you there if you don't have the strength."

Tails decided he might as well have a look – he could always bash his head against a wall later. "You said in my guest room, right?" he asked, rubbing his red eyes.

"Yup. In fact, why don't we leave him to it?" Sonic winked at Knuckles.

Knuckles actually grinned. "Sounds like a good idea, Sonic!"

"See ya!" they waved in unison. Tails watched them leave and heard them go downstairs. He took a breath and wiped the last of his tears away. Of course, if this 'surprise' wasn't a miracle solution to bring back Cosmo, he'd undoubtedly break down again.

He gathered his strength, got up and walked to the room next to his own. And sure enough the moment he opened the door, he started crying. "Oh – oh my God!" However, these weren't the tears of a fox who wanted to die; they were tears of joy.

Because there she was.

Even lying unconscious on his bed, Cosmo looked serene and peaceful. To Tails she somehow looked even more beautiful than he remembered: her skin glowed with health, her lustrous green hair shone and the twin buds upon her head appeared ready to burst into bloom at any moment. She had definitely matured during her six months absence, and Tails feared when she awoke and he gazed into her deep blue eyes that _he_ would be unconscious one.

It was all he could do not to throw himself into a one-sided hug with her, but he knew she wouldn't feel it and couldn't hug him back. Tails forced himself to wait; it would be more than worth it when she woke up. For now he had to make do with pulling up a chair and holding her limp hand. He didn't mind, though, because at the moment he was just thanking whatever fateful forces were at work that she was here at all despite the catastrophic explosion.

He had no idea how long he waited there listening to her steady breathing, but he did know that he wasn't going to move until Cosmo awoke. After an indeterminable length of time with no clock or watch, Sonic came back to check on him. "Still nothing?"

Tails shook his head. "No, but I'm not leaving her side."

"I'd expect nothing less." Sonic grinned when he saw him holding her hand.

"I'm so glad that Cosmo was fully restored before the machine exploded. Where did you find her, by the way?" Tails asked.

"Well, we found _you_ about fifty yards from your house here, but strangely Cosmo was lying exactly where the flower had been during the regeneration."

"Really? Must've worked better than I thought...or just got lucky." Then a concerned look crossed Tails' face. "Are you sure she's alright?"

"Oh yeah, there's no doubt she'll come round sooner or later. Obviously we couldn't use your X-Ray machine because it's in pieces, so Amy examined her. She's actually a pretty good nurse! Yep, there are no broken bones or anything. In fact she's in remarkably good shape for someone who's just been dragged back from who knows where!"

"Yeah, I noticed that too." Tails suddenly got up and hugged Sonic. "I'm sorry for treating you and Knuckles like that. You didn't deserve it and I should've believed you."

"Think nothing of it! I've already forgotten about it, but I'll tell Knuckles just in case!" Sonic pulled out of the hug and winked.

Tails sighed in relief. "Thanks! Listen, you two can leave if you want, I'll be fine looking after Cosmo."

Sonic smirked. "Aww, want to spend some time alone with her?"

"N-no, it's just -" Tails blushed and gave up pretending. "Ok, yes, but you can stay if you like."

"Nah, we were just worried Eggman might have seen the explosion and tried to get here. I know his base can't move, but you know how resourceful he is!"

Tails paused, weighing up the options. "I think I'll be alright. Even if he _does_ come here he won't be packing much in the way of weaponry. Besides, I can count on you to get here fast if I ring you, right?"

"You sure can!" Sonic walked out to the top of the stairs and called down them. "Come on Knuckles, we're outta here!" They heard him shout back an affirmative reply that he would wait outside.

Tails smiled. "Bye Sonic! I'll call you soon after she wakes!"

Sonic nodded but his face suddenly wore a serious expression. "Just a word of warning, buddy. Cosmo's absolutely fine physically, but we don't know how her mental state is holding up. Remember, we haven't got a clue where we've just pulled her from and it was pretty intense. I don't want to dampen your spirits, but be prepared; when she wakes up she might suffer from hallucinations, panic attacks or even memory loss..."

The implied meaning of his words hit Tails like a train. "_Oh God no...what if she doesn't remember me?"_

"Also, she might not even be the same person mentally." Sonic continued. "We all know how nice she was before, but that may not necessarily be the case now. For all we know she could turn aggressive or -"

"_Enough!"_ Tails shouted. "Please Sonic, can we just cross this bridge if we come to it? I don't want to imagine that right now!"

Sonic held up his hands in surrender. "Sorry Tails, you're right. I'm not usually this negative, most of what I just said was recited from Amy anyway. I only wanted you to brace yourself for whatever could happen."

"I understand that, Sonic." Tails said in a manner which suggested the topic was over.

A grin appeared on the hedgehog's face again. "Don't worry, I'm sure everything will be fine! See ya!" Sonic always spoke the final words in all their conversations, usually because he was gone before Tails could open his mouth. This was exactly what happened as Tails heard the front door slam shut.

The fox returned to Cosmo's side and began stroking her hair. He had to admit the combination of next to no sleep in the last few days, the stress of relentless effort and the raw shock of seeing Cosmo with his own eyes once again had left him drained. "_Oh, I'm so tired...but I can't fall asleep! I'll just lean my head against the bed and rest my eyes. I have to be there for her when she wakes up...can't drift off...not even for a nap...I won't...must..."_

...


	8. Chapter 8: Reunion

_I'm dancing with a girl. Soft green light illuminates us both, but the girl's face is weirdly obscure. Hang on – I can vaguely remember being elsewhere just a minute ago. My mind's telling me I'm not supposed to be here! Where am I? Why am I here with this strange girl? I'm meant to be somewhere else, waiting for something! Or someone..._

Tails' eyes shot open. His dream was cut short as he realised what he should have been doing, but at first his eyes couldn't adjust to the light. His left hand felt for her soft hair. Nothing. His heart skipped a beat and his right began searching for her, anything that would verify her presence on the bed. Still nothing. A surge of panic flooded through him and at that moment his vision finally agreed with the brightness. She was gone.

"No no NO! This can't be happening!" He leapt up from his chair. How long had he been sleeping? Judging by the orange glow coming through his window he guessed it was early evening. That was...eight hours?! Maybe more! "COSMO!" he yelled. He forced himself to move and began desperately searching other rooms. "COSMO! WHERE ARE YOU?!" Tails cursed his own stupidity; anything could have happened in all that time. He continued to call for her (to no avail) and his brain quickly ran through possible culprits. Eggman? Reincarnated Metarex? A new enemy? But a voice inside his brain answered for him. "_If she's been kidnapped, the only person you have to blame is yourself."_

She wasn't upstairs. "COSMO!" He didn't even know why he was shouting anymore. He literally flew downstairs and raced into the living room. "COS -" His voice stopped dead in his throat and he froze as though time itself had stopped.

"Hi Tails!" said the green-haired girl in front of him.

Somehow he managed to unblock the words. "C-Cosmo? Oh...oh m-my God..." Tears formed in his eyes and before he knew what he was doing his feet were staggering towards her. He stumbled and started to fall but Cosmo was already there to catch him. She wrapped her arms around him and he cried into her shoulder. "I t-thought I'd n-never see you again..." he choked as his own arms gripped her waist tightly.

"Hey, hey..." Cosmo soothed him. Still locked together, she guided them to Tails' sofa and they slowly sat down upon it. "That's right, let it all out..."

Tails' heart slowed slightly and he calmed down enough to raise his head. Then he made the mistake of looking right into her eyes. Instantly he felt like his limbs had been bound by unbreakable chains; he just couldn't move or tear his gaze away. Their ocean blue colour seemed to hide an entire universe behind them and it didn't help that she was smiling at him, making her eyes sparkle all the more.

Eventually Cosmo tilted her head. "What's wrong, Tails?"

The kitsune somehow managed to break eye contact and Cosmo wiped away his tears. He looked back at her and spoke in a voice that was still somewhat shaky. "Nothing's wrong anymore, Cosmo. I'm so happy you're here again!" Tails realised he was being extremely clingy and made himself release her. If Cosmo felt more comfortable being given the personal space, she didn't show it; in fact she looked almost disappointed.

"I'm happy too, Tails. Where's 'here', though? I'm assuming this is your house, but..."

Tails smacked his forehead. "Of course! You've never been on this planet before, have you? This is my home planet Mobius and yeah, this is my house." A thousand questions of his own were fighting to be the first to get out of his mouth. He didn't expect "How long have you been awake?" to win, but for some reason that was exactly what he asked.

"Oh, only about an hour. I'm sorry that I didn't wake you, but I was really confused about where I was. I felt much safer when I saw you next to me though!" Cosmo suddenly beamed at him. "Besides, you looked so peaceful and cute that I – oh no, what am I saying?!" she scolded herself. I-I'm sorry Tails, I didn't mean to..." she trailed off, unsure how to finish her sentence.

"_She thinks I'm cute?_" Tails laughed nervously. "Don't apologise Cosmo, I'll take it as a compliment." he said blushing.

Cosmo smiled gently and continued. "I realised this was probably your house, so I had a look around. I hope you don't mind!" Tails shook his head. "Oh, thank you! Your home is very comfortable, Tails!"

"It's not much." he replied modestly. "Literally not much now that the workshop's gone."

"Oh gosh, I saw that! What happened? Are you ok?"

Tails sighed and knew there was no point keeping anything from her. He told her everything: how she had left a seed behind after her death, the creation of the detector, the skirmish with Eggman, the completion of the machine and finally the explosion. By this point he was close to crying yet again; reliving the whole ordeal was more difficult than he had imagined.

"At first I thought I'd lost you..." Tails sniffed shakily, finding it hard to go on. Cosmo shuffled closer and held his hand. This did give him more strength. "But then Sonic found you where you would have been even if it had gone perfectly. So he and Knuckles carried you up to the bed." he finished. "I'm so glad you're alright!"

Cosmo stared at him in amazement. "That's quite a story, Tails! I think I understood most of it." she said musingly. Then an indiscernible look crossed her features. "But Tails, I can't believe everything you put yourself through! Did you really do all that...for me?"

"Of course I did! I care about you a lot, Cosmo." He wished she knew just how much of an understatement that was. Then again, he couldn't tell her the full extent of his devotion – she'd think he was a creep.

"Oh, Tails! You mean a lot to me too!" She pulled him into another tight squeeze. "You're such a wonderful friend! Thank you!"

Tails lived for these moments when they were together: when she shared her thoughts with him, when she complimented him, when she warmed both his body and heart with affectionate hugs…all of this was a huge reason why he'd pushed himself so hard to bring her back. So why were his spirits dampened? Granted, they were still very high, but Tails could feel something nagging at him. Deep down his heart knew what it was, but the rest of his very being was refusing to acknowledge it, most likely because it made him want to curl up in a corner and cry.

It was time to face facts. What had he truly expected to happen when he saw Cosmo again? In the fantasy world set out in his own mind, they would first run towards each other and embrace. That, at least, had sort of happened. But after that the similarities crashed more rapidly than Eggman's egg carriers. The much bolder Tails in his brain would wordlessly pick Cosmo up bridal-style, take off with his namesakes and kiss her; he'd ended up crying on her shoulder. He wanted to pour out his soul to her, give her everything, ask her to stay with him…but life just didn't work like that.

Cosmo's own words had brought on these negative thoughts; she had called him her friend. A wonderful friend, yes, but just a friend nonetheless. That had been the final nail in the coffin. It was obvious to Tails that she didn't return his feelings, and no matter how much she showered him with praise and affection, he knew she would never see him in the same way he saw her.

Still, he did recognise that right now he should be very grateful she was here at all. Tails thought his best bet was to simply be himself. Cosmo's mere presence brought the best out of him anyway…maybe one day she would realise how much he loved her. So Tails replied to her thanks with exactly what was in his heart. "It's my pleasure, Cosmo." He moved away again before she got fed up of hugging him.

"But how long did all of that take?" Cosmo asked. "It sounded like a lot of work!"

Tails bit his lip. The one area he had avoided mentioning during his explanation was any scale of time. If she found out that he'd spent half a year grafting non-stop her return, what would she think of him? Obsessive? Probably. "Er…I dunno. I mean, hang on – er…" He looked away.

Cosmo moved closer. "Tails? How long?"

The fox suddenly realised that in Cosmo's thought process the longer he stalled, the harder it was to remember, meaning she would think it was a long time anyway. He tried meeting her soft gaze, but it was impossible for him to look at her and lie. Tails knew he had to be truthful. "Um…about six months?"

He tried to incline the pitch of his voice so it sounded more like an estimate, but he could instantly tell it hadn't made a blind bit of difference. Cosmo's eyes widened in shock. "S-six months?! Oh…oh no…" He could see conflicting emotions fighting her and she looked like she was going to panic. When her breathing began to audibly quicken Tails had no idea if she was about to scream or run from his house (or both). But no, instead she did what all girls do when they're in a situation where they're torn and burst into tears.

Tails frowned in confusion, but at the moment he was just glad she hadn't fled. He moved to put an arm around her, but then stopped himself. Would she prefer not to be touched by him? "_Come on Tails, you're supposed to comfort her!_" He forced the doubts away.

"Hey, what's the matter?" he quietly asked while positioning a tentative arm around her.

Almost the moment he touched her she threw her own arms around him and held him in a near death grip. "W-what have I done? You've w-wasted so much of your life just b-because of me! I d-don't deserve you Tails!"

Tails closed his eyes as she continued to cry into his neck fur. He was relieved she wasn't angry, but he did wish that Cosmo wouldn't blame herself so often – her noble demeanour hadn't changed. He recognised a chance to show her how much he cared. "Wasted? Never. When you sacrificed yourself, every living animal in the galaxy owed their lives to you; they still do. What you deserve is the deepest thanks from all of us, including me, and you also deserve the life you gave away back. So I've just repayed a small part of that debt."

Cosmo wiped her eyes and looked into his. "You don't owe me anything, Tails." she said sincerely.

"Yes I do." he insisted. "I owe you everything because I – I'm the one who -" He couldn't bring himself to finish.

After a second or two of confusion, Cosmo's expression switched to one of stark recognition. "Oh no…please tell me you haven't spent all that time blaming yourself for that!" Tails hung his head and nodded. "That wasn't your fault! Please listen to me Tails! Look at me…" She gently took hold of his chin and lifted it. "I _asked _you to do it. It was my choice."

"But…but I _killed _you…" he whispered in shame.

Cosmo put a finger over his mouth to silence him. "No. It was those evil monsters who had already taken everything away from me, and they would have taken you as well if you hadn't been so brave! So promise me you'll never put yourself down over that again!"

Tails sighed and slowly nodded. "I can try."

Cosmo, seemingly satisfied that those words were as far as they were going to get today, now held him in a much softer embrace. He enjoyed it for about a minute before making himself pull away again; she was probably sick of hugging him by now. "I'd better ring Sonic and the others and tell them you're awake." He started to rise from the sofa.

"Tails, wait! It's getting late, I think we should tell them tomorrow." Tails checked the clock and was surprised to see it was already half past nine. They had been talking for longer than he'd thought.

He flopped back down onto the cushions. "I suppose you're right. We don't want to overwhelm you when you've only just come back either, do we?"

Cosmo giggled. "Aww, that's so thoughtful! Besides, um…I'd like to spend some more time with you first, Tails!"

"Really? Well, uh – I mean…" He laughed nervously and changed the subject before he made a complete imbecile of himself. "Listen Cosmo, if you don't mind I've got a few questions about, you know…while you were gone."

"_Oh, why am I so selfish?_" Cosmo thought as she realised Tails knew nothing about her experiences in that terrible world whereas she had asked everything about him. "Of course I don't mind Tails! Actually I'm sorry I asked so many questions without giving you a chance…"

Tails smiled. "Don't worry, I'm curious too! So, before anything else, I guess I should ask you, well…were you _aware_ of who you are and what had happened?"

Cosmo nodded vigorously. "Yes, I remembered everything." She went on to explain the world's appearance and passing of time in detail, but decided to avoid mentioning her personal experiences and kept it very neutral; all she had brought back from that place was depressing and spiteful memories.

"So it was all green and sunny, then?" Tails said, smirking. He obviously hadn't noticed her total lack of enthusiasm. "Sounds just right for you! And who did you get to know? Were there civilisations of people?"

Cosmo's heart sank. He had already breached the subject she really didn't want to share – who had been with her. "No, there weren't." she answered truthfully.

"Really? Not even a small community?"

Cosmo paused for a moment. "There were no structures or buildings for anyone to live in." she said carefully, almost chewing each word before they came out.

"So you were alone?" Tails pressed.

"_I can't lie to him…he'll never develop any feelings for me if I can't even tell him the truth!_" Cosmo sighed and spoke slowly. "No, I wasn't alone. There was…someone else. Just one boy. I found him very soon after I woke up."

Tails looked slightly crestfallen. "Did you – did you spend a lot of time together?"

She frowned at the weirdness of the question. He didn't even want to know his name first? "I didn't really get to know him. He wasn't who I thought he was." she honestly responded.

"Oh…are you ok, Cosmo?" Tails asked quietly.

Cosmo felt the old wounds of rejection seep open and shook her head. "N-no, I don't think so. He d-didn't care about me…" She sniffed and tried to hold back the tears, but she knew they were inevitable. So she moved into the only haven where she was truly safe – Tails' arms. Now in a warm refuge, the floodgates opened. "It was j-just horrible, Tails! I f-felt so lonely!" She continued to sob half-formed sentences until her words were no more than incoherent noises.

"It's alright, you're not there anymore. You're here now." Tails reassured her as she cried heavily on his shoulder. "How could anyone treat you badly, Cosmo? You're so caring…he didn't deserve your company! I hope he has the misfortune of meeting me one day – I'd teach him a lesson!"

The irony of what he was saying combined with the ridiculous image of two identical foxes smacking each other with their tails stopped her tears. Cosmo began to laugh.

"Huh? Why are you laughing?" Tails asked, seemingly baffled by her sudden mood change.

She looked up at him admiringly. "You're exactly right, Tails; what's happened in the past doesn't matter." she replied, now snuggling into his soft fur. "You rescued me from that nightmare and I don't want to talk about it anymore. We should be dreaming about our futures!"

"Yup! The main thing is that you're back, so we can put all the dark times behind us!"

"Mmhm! And that's all thanks to you! Don't ever forget that!" She beamed at him and couldn't stop pieces of her heart slipping out. "You're the most important person in my life, Tails!" Cosmo didn't care about the 'Tails' she's met in that stupid world. He was a fake and couldn't hope to hold a candle against the fox she was holding at that very moment. This Tails was the one she'd fallen in love with. She was sure of it.

All too soon, he pulled out of the blissful embrace and they sat in comfortable silence for a few minutes. It was, unfortunately, Tails' reluctance to hug her that was the single issue troubling Cosmo. "_He keeps moving away every time I touch him…_" Obviously she wanted to be with him rather than his insensitive double, but she couldn't shake the sickening thought that this kitsune didn't have feelings for her either. "_Oh Tails, why can't you see how much I love you? Please just let me cuddle with you…_"

Eventually Tails broke the quiet. "So, where would you like to sleep tonight, Cosmo?"

Cosmo looked at him hopefully. She'd been meaning to ask him if she could stay for a while. "Can I sleep here in your house please? I'm sorry to be a pain!"

Tails burst out laughing. "Haha! Cosmo, you didn't really think I'd consider letting you sleep anywhere else, did you? You're welcome to stay as long as you like! I meant, which _room _do you want sleep in?"

"Oh! Thank you so much! I really don't mind, it's your home Tails."

"Come on, you can choose anywhere you like! Guest room? Sofa? If you want, you can take my bed and I'll sleep in the other room."

"No no no, don't move out of your own bed! Actually, I was hoping we could sleep -" Cosmo clapped a hand over her mouth just in time to prevent the final word 'together' from escaping. "_Have I gone insane?!"_ She had been so swept up by his kindness, she'd almost suggested what she badly wanted but couldn't possibly ask for. _"He invites me to stay and I nearly throw it back in his face! I'm such an idiot!"_

Tails looked thoroughly confused. "Hoping we could what? Sorry, I didn't catch that Cosmo."

"Um…I was hoping we could sleep until about nine in the morning." She managed to save herself. "To clean up your workshop, I mean. I'm responsible for that terrible mess!"

"No, you're not." Tails smiled. "But yeah, I could use a bit of help in that respect. I'll take you up on that offer Cosmo! Thanks!"

She returned the smile. "No problem! And the guest room's just fine, thank you." Tails nodded and led her upstairs. They said their goodnights and Cosmo closed the bedroom door behind her. She lay down, already missing the physical and emotional warmth of his presence. She closed her eyes and instantly the image of his handsome face formed. Even in her head, his striking blue eyes pierced her.

Cosmo's mind wandered further and that night she had to make do with simply imagining their arms wrapped around each other in his bed, and the hope that one day it would become a reality.


	9. Chapter 9: The Bad Guys Always Know

Shadow found himself standing next to the six Chaos Emeralds. He wasn't entirely sure why; they just seemed to call out to him. He knew he could destroy the protective equipment and grab them in seconds, but what would be the point in that? He had no use for them, apart from perhaps warping with Chaos Control. Eggman had found them fair and square, but the hedgehog did wonder what the Doctor planned to do when he had all seven.

However, for the moment it turned out that it didn't matter. Eggman had arrived back at the base in the shoulder joint about half an hour ago, without the Emerald. The genius had looked deeply troubled and before Shadow could inquire, Eggman had asked "Did you bring the fox back here?" Shadow had nodded and told him in which room he was keeping Tails captive. With that the Doctor had simply said "Wait here." and headed off, presumably to wait for Tails to wake up so he could question him.

Shadow wasn't the type to become jealous of anything or anyone, but being in the dark about what was going on irked him slightly. He was just about to go and see what Eggman was doing when the doors slid open. He turned and was disappointed to find the female bat standing there, but he didn't let it show, of course.

Rouge strolled in and immediately took the place where Eggman would usually sit. "What's up, Shadow? Where's our precious Doctor? Not that I'm complaining, 'cause this seat's _really _comfy."

"Didn't you see? There was an explosion at Tails' house. His regeneration attempt obviously failed and he was blasted out of his house, so I brought his unconscious body back here. Now we have a nice little hostage situation going on to bargain for the last Emerald." he explained.

The expression on Rouge's face was ridiculous. "Huh? I don't know what you've eaten recently, but I think you need to cook it more thoroughly next time!"

Shadow scowled. "And what do you mean by that?"

"I mean that I spoke to Knuckles less than twenty minutes ago and he said that Tails is in his house doing just fine!"

"What?!" Shadow was momentarily stunned before the natural explanation occurred to him. "That stupid echidna was obviously lying. Trying to lead us onto a false trail."

"I don't think so, Shadow. Not only is Knuckles helpfully gullible, but he's also a terrible liar even at the best of times. I know him well and I could tell he was being truthful. Besides, he looked genuinely happy!"

Shadow frowned. "What were you doing, speaking with him anyway?"

"Just completing a little deal we had where he helped me get some gems. You know, the usual. But then he told me that although there had been an accident, he and Sonic had found Tails and looked after him until he woke up!"

"But I took him unconscious!" Shadow held his head in his hands, hating the confusion that was dominating his mind. "Grr! Listen to me, I don't know what _you've _been eating, but Tails is being questioned by the Doctor as we speak! That fox can't be in two places at once! Therefore -"

"Actually, he _can." _The pair hadn't heard the doors open again and now Eggman walked inside. He saw Rouge and scowled. "What did I say about coming in here? And get out of my chair!"

Rouge rolled her eyes and leapt from the seat, allowing Eggman to take his place. "Is my presence really a priority? What did you mean, Tails can be in two places at once?"

Eggman raised his eyebrows. "Fine, I suppose you need to hear this." He paused for a few seconds. "Hmm…where to start? Well, firstly let's just say there have been some significant complications."

"You don't say." Shadow said dryly. "Rouge thinks that Tails is in his house, but we _know _that -"

"I know what we all think. I've been listening to you two ranting on at each other for a while and _everyone's_ right. Even the echidna."

Shadow's mind span. "Spit it out, Doctor! How can all of us be correct?"

"Bear with me! Allow me to tell my side of the story. As Shadow already knows, when the explosion happened I flew to the site so I could pinch some Mowarium and take the last Emerald from Tails' grubby fingers."

"And you returned with neither." Shadow couldn't help interrupting. "You looked pretty confused as well."

"Yes, while all of that is true, if you keep butting in we'll never get anywhere!" Eggman stared Shadow down for a few moments before the hedgehog held up his hands. "Good! Now, where was I?"

"Half-way up your own -" Rouge began.

"SHUT IT! As I was saying, the problems began as soon as I got there. The first thing I noticed was that my Emerald radar wasn't responding nearly as strongly enough for it to be in his house."

"So Tails _doesn't _have the Emerald." Shadow sighed.

"It seems that way. Not only that, but after I hid for a while Sonic and Knuckles came out of there too!"

Rouge held up a finger. "Hang on – I thought his house was in pieces."

"Only his workshop was blown to smithereens; the rest is intact." Eggman explained. "Anyway, I could hardly take both of them on unarmed, so I waited. Thing is, when they left they started shouting a load of stuff like 'See you Tails!' and 'Have fun!' and other mushy rubbish."

"Told you!" Rouge taunted. She stuck her tongue out at Shadow.

Shadow was about to retort but Eggman cut in before a pointless argument broke out. "One of their comments was of particular interest. Sonic said 'Call us when she wakes up!' So who could 'she' have been?" He waited to gauge their reactions.

After a short silence Shadow said, "You're not really suggesting that his experiment was actually a success, are you? The whole damn thing blew up!"

Eggman tapped his fingers on the desk in front of him. "I can't tell you anything for certain, so let's be sensible for once. We need to review each problem, one at a time. Firstly the missing Emerald. Both Sonic and Knuckles aren't carrying it around and Tails doesn't have at all!"

"Well then it's probably in one of _their _homes." Shadow deduced.

"Wait a sec there Shadow." Rouge said. "I'm careful with the Emeralds because I steal them, but even a normal person wouldn't be dumb enough to leave a Chaos Emeralds unattended in their house, especially when they know that someone like the Doctor here is snooping around for it!"

"Didn't think I'd ever say this, but I'm with the bat on this one." Eggman grudgingly admitted. "I've gotta say I'm out of ideas for the Emerald's location, but unfortunately that's the least of our problems right now."

"Too right." Shadow said. "What about this 'Call us when she wakes up' issue? Could Tails have brought her back despite the explosion?"

"We'd be brainless fools not to take into account the possibility that Cosmo's among the living again. And I'm _not _a fool! That hedgehog and echidna were far too happy to have killed her a second time when they'd just blown up half of their best friend's house! The evidence is all there; I think the fox actually managed to pull her back from the dead!"

"So what do we do?" Rouge asked.

"Happily we don't _have_ to do anything!" Eggman said cheerfully as he clapped his hands together. "Tails has his girlfriend back. Big whoop! She's no threat whatsoever, and in fact she may prove useful to have in a _real _hostage situation!"

"You're saying the one we have at the minute is inadequate?" Shadow said dubiously.

"Actually yes, I am." Eggman said. "This ties in quite nicely with our little foxy confusion problem."

"_Finally!" _Rouge said loudly. "Have you figured it out, egghead? How is Tails suddenly everywhere all at once?"

Eggman grinned and pushed a button, causing a large screen to lower until it was at a comfortable viewing height. "There's no doubt in my mind that Sonic and Knuckles were indeed talking to Tails, who is by now probably eating out of that plant girl's organic hand. So Shadow, who do you think you brought back here?"

Shadow closed his eyes. "I feared you'd say something like that. So it's true; there are two of them."

The Doctor tapped another button and the screen flicked on to reveal a fox identical to Tails trapped in a chamber. "This room has the highest security in the base. Ladies and gentleman, I give you…Heads."

"_Heads?_" Rouge scoffed. "What sort of – oh. I see what you did there. Very clever." Her voice couldn't have sounded more sarcastic.

Even Shadow managed a smirk. "Nice name you've given him. Did you decide on that by flipping a coin?"

"See, now we're all joining in the fun!" Eggman said in a jolly manner. "That title is more fitting than you think; physically he looks the same, but mentally he's the exact opposite of my main furry rival. I mean, just look at him!"

Shadow could see what he meant. Heads' eyes were lifeless and his entire aura screamed of a defeatist attitude. Rouge spoke up and confirmed she thought the same. "He _does _look on a bit of a downer, doesn't he?"

"Exactly." Eggman nodded. "The real Tails would be fighting to escape, warning me that Sonic would bust him out and all that talk. But this weirdo here has been oddly co-operative. He told me that he was with Cosmo before being dragged into this world."

"So that explains where he came from!" Rouge exclaimed. "Heads must've been inside the seed with Cosmo, and then he was regenerated as well!"

"Precisely." Eggman coerced again. "I believe his very existence is also the reason behind the explosion. The real Tails would have calibrated his machinery to extract one soul from the seed. This piece extra baggage likely overloaded it."

Shadow nodded, finally accepting that there were two foxes. Heads and Tails. Polar opposites. "Hmm…but what was this guy doing in the seed in the first place? Only Cosmo died!"

"Now that's a question to which even I don't have the answer." Eggman huffed and drummed his fingers again. "I've got a couple of theories, but right now they're irrelevant. What matters is that we've picked up a potentially valuable tool to use at our leisure!"

"But we've been dumped with the raw end of the deal!" Rouge pointed out. "Even if we tell Sonic and all that lot that we have Heads, they won't be interested. They'll be very confused, yes, but as a hostage he…well, he isn't!"

"Waste not, want not Rouge!" Eggman wagged his finger as though he were lecturing a naughty child. "Remember, they don't even know that Heads exists! Let's allow the real Tails to frolic around in his success with his girlfriend for a while; it'll only give me all the more satisfaction when I pit his doppelgänger against him!"

"You think you can make _him _want to fight?" Rouge pointed at Heads, who hadn't moved at all since the camera had been turned on. "He doesn't look prepared to swat a fly!"

"Come now, you know how…_persuasive _I can be." Eggman said slowly, the grin on his face at maximum evil.

Shadow folded his arms. "You're going to corrupt him." It was a statement, not a question.

"Right in one!" Eggman's smirk fell slightly when he saw Shadow's distasteful look. "Something the matter, hedgehog? Do you disapprove of my methods?"

Shadow had personally never agreed with mental manipulation, although maybe that was because sometimes he didn't understand his own thoughts. He decided to sum up this idea with "It's your base. Do whatever you like."

Eggman mumbled something along the lines of "Should be a politician…" before his face lit up again. "It'll be a cinch to make that copy-fox jealous of his original self! Why should Tails be happy with a girl while he's suffering? How could Tails have the gall to steal her away when he's spent the last few months with her? Jealousy leads to hatred, and hatred breeds violence! Oh yes, I'm gonna have fun with this!"

"Don't forget about the Chaos Emerald." Shadow cautioned.

"We'll find that in time. In fact, if Sonic and Knuckles don't have it, it'll be so very easy to snatch from whichever one of those fools _does_!"

Rouge drew herself up to her full height. "Well, sounds like you've got it all worked out, eggy. Think I'll leave you to it, seeing as you hate me being in half of the base anyway. See you boys!" She winked, spun on her heel and elegantly walked from the room.

Shadow gave her a few moments to be out of earshot before he voiced a niggling concern. "Are you sure we can trust her, Doctor? She's a little too close to that gang, especially Knuckles."

Eggman seemed to have already prepared an answer. "You know as well as I do that Rouge never does anything for anyone unless there's something shiny in it for her. She's loyal to no-one, so I don't think we've got anything to worry about." He swivelled around in his chair a few times. "Still, we'd best be sure. Shadow, go make yourself useful while I convince the fox to make a hole in his counterpart's face!"

Shadow had an uneasy feeling he was about to be dismissed to do some mundane task which was an insult to his abilities, but he decided to play along for now. "Go on."

"Take my portable Emerald radar and try to find out who has it. While you're out there, keep an eye out for that thieving bat; make sure she doesn't prematurely spill the beans!"

"_Yes, just as I thought. Quiet, safe and boring._" Shadow forced a smile. "Of course, Doctor. I won't let you down."

* * *

A stony faced being stood in the spacious control room of the spaceship which he himself had named, the Kosmerforsch. He was watching the progress of its descent upon a planet which could hold the key to what he and his crew members seeked. The landing process was automatic, but he still had to keep a watchful eye on it; on more than one occasion he'd found his face suddenly becoming well acquainted with a wall after a dodgy touchdown.

He heard the doors behind him open to grant somebody access, but didn't turn. He knew who it was and wanted to hear her speak before greeting her. "You called for me, Commander Deczehn?" a passive voice asked.

He savoured the sound a moment. Then he finally turned and allowed his expression to soften. The source of the voice was his female assistant, Novemnine. The moment he turned, the woman raised two fingers and held them horizontally across her forehead, a salute of submission and loyalty among their race. Deczehn smiled and shook his head light heartedly. "Novemnine, how many times must I tell you? You don't need to observe such formalities with me – it only applies to my more masculine subordinates."

Novemnine nodded. "Of course. But remember, I'm always here at your disposal, sir."

Deczehn fought the urge to tell her not to use 'sir' as well; he wished she'd call him by his name alone just once. Normally he'd enjoy holding power over as many people as possible, but he made an exception for her. The problem he faced was simply that Novemnine was painfully beautiful, and now that they had spent so long on this single mission, he had also been gifted the time to learn her gentle personality too. Deczehn would never leak a drop of these emotions to anyone else, but when their task here was complete, he planned to finally do something about it.

"Sir? Is something the matter?"

Deczehn realised he'd been silent for several seconds. "Everything's fine. I need you to gather as much information as possible concerning this planet we're landing on, if you'd be so kind."

Novemnine raised her fingers to her forehead again and walked over to the nearby master computer. Deczehn sighed – he wanted to get past their strictly business relationship before truly attempting to woo her, but she seemed adamant in obeying the traditional hierarchy at all times. He chuckled as he imagined the irony of a situation in which he commanded her to address him in a more familiar manner.

After another minute or so, Novemnine spoke up. "I've got everything we know up on the database, sir. Planet name is Mobius. Population is relatively low for its size, but there are some major cities. Climate is mild. Majority of natives possess level 4 intelligence and the local time at our landing co-ordinates…8:26am."

Deczehn groaned. "Great. Just in time for everyone to wake up and see a massive great spaceship making a visit. Novemnine, adjust the co-ordinates so we'll be completely out of sight from any major civilisation. And you said they have level 4 intelligence?"

"Yes, Commander. But if I may comment, I think that whoever caused the energy spike is much more intelligent than that. They've accomplished something our people have failed in for years."

He nodded as he watched Novemnine tap the keyboard. "A very astute observation; I hadn't thought of that." The reason they were targeting this planet in the first place was because of a huge burst of unnatural energy originating from somewhere on the surface. Deczehn could hardly believe his good fortune – computers had identified it to be regeneration energy, the very sort of technology his superiors had tasked him to find. They had only been passing through this solar system to reach a far more distant planet which was well known for scientific advances, but now this place was providing an opportunity he couldn't pass up.

"This energy was obviously artificial, so we need to be careful when we find those responsible." Novemnine continued. "I doubt they'll give up their knowledge willingly, so they could become dangerous."

Deczehn smiled widely. "See, this is why I rely on you. Sometimes you consider outcomes even I fail to see."

Novemnine smiled slightly in return. "Thank you, Commander. Do you need anything else? There is much more information on the database, if you'd like to hear it."

"No, as long as our approach is invisible and we're still fairly close to the energy source, there shouldn't be any problems. I need to land this thing in a minute anyway." He walked to the control panel and began pressing buttons. "Novemnine, go and fetch the other two and bring them here, would you? I need to brief them after we land."

"At once, Commander." She saluted and walked smartly from the room. Deczehn glanced at her as she left. Even from behind, Novemnine was mesmerising, her long blue hair flowing behind her. He shook his head and forced himself to focus. "_Don't want a faceful of wall again…_"

**This chapter introduced two original characters; in the next chapter there will be two more, but that's all. Their roles will become apparent later.  
Just in case you're wondering, Deczehn is pronounced 'Dec-zane' and Novemnine is pronounced exactly as it looks, 'No-vem-nine'.**


	10. Chapter 10: Split Decisions

Tails didn't need an alarm clock. His body woke itself at almost exactly the same time every morning. He had always been an early riser, and the rigorous routine he'd followed during the last six months had cemented an eight o' clock start within him.

The fox stretched and rubbed his eyes, then got out of bed, flexed his tails and attended to his first priority – not sating his rumbling stomach, but checking on Cosmo's safety. He quietly opened the guest room door and peered inside. Sure enough, there she was. Sound asleep.

That was when something hit him. Normally he would eat a hasty breakfast before immediately starting work on a machine part to bring back Cosmo. But now she was mere feet away from him. "Wow…I really don't have to feel like a slave to my own guilt anymore, do I?" he mused. "I can do what I like!" A huge smile broke across his face and he did a little dance on the spot. There was no more crushing pressure; in a single day all of the weight had been lifted. And it felt fantastic.

"So, what should I eat for breakfast?" he wondered aloud. Tails realised it didn't matter. He could have cereal, or fruit, or cook something – the length of time needed to make it was irrelevant. And when should he have it? It didn't matter. He could eat now, or in half an hour, or with Cosmo when she woke up – nothing was forcing him to hurry.

The raw freedom was liberating. "_I can live the rest of my life with Cosmo and my friends! And one day the time will be right to tell her…_"

He decided to wait so he could eat with Cosmo. It was the gentlemanly thing to do, after all. Tails suddenly felt a wave of déjà vu as he found himself in a strikingly similar situation to yesterday; sitting by her bedside, waiting for her to awaken. Only this time he wasn't worrying about her asking 'Who are you?' when she did.

From what little he knew of Cosmo's past, he had learned that she was quite the daydreamer. She had once told him that her family had always been amused by her regular episodes of spacing out, and from what Tails could see this behaviour applied to her actual dreams as well. Cosmo was more deeply asleep than anyone he'd ever seen – she didn't so much as twitch. Watching her sleep wasn't boring though. In fact he preferred that she was quiet in slumber, because it proved she was at peace.

However, there was one thing Tails was concerned about - annoyingly, himself. He'd made himself promise he wouldn't touch her, but powerful urges to stroke her hair and soft cheek were swarming his mind. To his despair the involuntary thoughts gradually worsened, and it wasn't until an almost overwhelming desire to climb into the same bed and cuddle her hit him that he knew he had to compromise. He forced the selfish part of himself to be satisfied with playing with her hair.

Surprisingly this did invoke a reaction, despite how distant she was. Cosmo stirred and a small smile appeared on her face. Tails couldn't help grinning. After a while she let out a contented "Mmm…" His eyes widened; it was as though she knew she was being cared for. Then, when a mind-numbingly sweet "Mmmm…oh, Tails…" escaped her lips, he immediately left and had a cold shower before he did something he'd regret.

Upon drying himself, he opened the bathroom door to see a drowsy looking Cosmo stood in the hallway. Her expression perked up when she saw him. "Hey Cosmo, how did you sleep?" Tails asked, although he already pretty much knew. But the response was not what he expected. Instead of replying 'Very well, thank you' or even with a short 'Fine', she started giggling. His confused face probably pushed her over the edge, because a few seconds later she couldn't stop laughing.

Cosmo eventually managed to recover and said, "Oh, I'm sorry about that Tails! It's just…it's just your fur is -" She lost it again and pointed at his body while shaking with laughter.

Tails didn't need to look down to know what she meant. During the stage between drying and brushing, his fur was a tangled mess. He knew he looked like an insane barber had been let loose on him. "Yeah it's a bit all over the place at the minute. But it looks better after I've brushed it, honest! I'd better do it now."

Cosmo held up a hand. "Wait!" She approached him, still trying to fight down giggles. "Let me just touch it…" Tails didn't have any time or indeed any incentive to resist. The moment she began feeling his fur between her delicate fingers, tiny sparks flew to every nerve in his body. The fact that such a small action could produce such a spine-tingling reaction genuinely shocked him.

He barely noticed when she started talking to him again. "Even like this, your fur is very soft, isn't it?" She smiled at him. "And yes, it'll look lovely when you've finished!"

"I, uh…thanks?" The kitsune nervously scratched the back of his head.

Cosmo's face suddenly turned shameful. "I'm sorry for laughing. I should be more sensitive to your feelings."

"_I just want you to sense how strong my feelings actually are…_" Despite his longing thoughts, Tails laughed. "Cosmo, if you were any more sensitive you wouldn't be as wonderful to be around as you are now! You're already so caring, please don't change. And I really don't mind, I know I look ridiculous!" This was true. As embarrassed as he was, Cosmo's laugh was music to his ears, just like her normal voice.

"Aww, thank you! Well, I suppose I'd better have a bath."

"Hang on. What do you want for breakfast?" he asked.

"Um…I think I'll just pour myself some cereal after I'm done in the bathroom."

"Are you sure? I'll cook something for you if you like."

"No really, you don't have to trouble yourself." She crossed the small distance between them and hugged him tightly. "That's really sweet, though! I appreciate the gesture." Cosmo pecked him on the cheek and skipped into the bathroom, closing the door behind her.

Tails stood rooted to the spot for several seconds. During the embrace he'd found his nose right next to a bud on her head, and as a result had ended up inhaling what it secreted. The experience was simply dizzying; Cosmo's scent was of fresh flowers and sweet honey with a hint of flavoured herbs, all blended together to form the most fantastic concoction. How she could smell so good after just waking up was a skill Tails wished he could mimic. "_I'd better not let myself anywhere near her when she's had that bath…_" The fact that she'd kissed him didn't help either, the spot on his cheek still burning. When his brain finally kicked back into gear, he went to brush his stubborn fur into something a girl might actually find appealing.

Now that he didn't look like a victim of the electric chair, he reluctantly stepped into his workshop to survey the extent of damage.

It didn't look good. Tails had suffered quite a few accidents in this place before, but this was far beyond anything he'd expected. How on Mobius he hadn't at least been seriously injured, he had no idea. He sat on the stump of a wrecked machine part for a while, pondering the best way to go about cleaning this up. "_It'll probably be easiest if I just dispose of absolutely everything and start again. But it'll take forever to clear everything out alone! And I can't expect Cosmo to help, she didn't cause this. Not to mention some of this stuff's really heavy…"_

As if in response to his thoughts of her, he heard a worried voice call for him. "Tails? Where are you?"

"In here, Cosmo!" he called back. Usually his workshop was separated from his house by a solid steel, soundproofed door which required a five character password to open, but the explosion had mangled all of the electronics beyond repair, so anyone was free to walk in. Not that there was anything worth stealing in here now.

Cosmo cautiously crossed the threshold. "I'm sorry Tails." she said sadly. "I know this was your special place." He sat in silence for a few moments before raising his head. Cosmo looked radiant, even though she had to wear the same dress as yesterday since she'd brought nothing but herself back to this dimension. The only thing missing was her smile; Tails planned to fix that.

"It's ok. Sacrificing this is nothing when it means you're with us again."

He saw Cosmo blush. "Oh Tails, you're just being nice…you kept the X-Tornado in here too, and now even that's ruined!"

"No, I mean it. And I built two; the other one's stored underground with the Blue Typhoon, so it's no problem. Besides, these things can always be replaced. You can't. I'd rather have you and no home at all than if you weren't here with me."

By now Cosmo's face was redder than a traffic light against her pale skin. "Please Tails, I'm not worth all that! Here, I'll help you clean this up."

Tails had already decided what he wanted to do with her, and it didn't involve lugging around broken machinery. "First of all, you _are _worth that and so much more. Second, getting you to help me deal with this would be criminal! You had no choice in us bringing you back, and anyway what sort of welcome would that be? It's your first day back, Cosmo! Let's call everyone so we can celebrate!"

"But who will clear the mess?"

"Don't worry, I'll get Sonic and Knuckles to help later; it'll take no time with those two in tow! Tell you what, we'll all go to the shopping centre! Amy and Cream can help you pick out some new clothes!"

He saw her eyes light up. "Oh, that's so kind...but what about money?"

"Believe me, Amy will be tripping over her own hammers to pay. She'd be ecstatic just to go shopping with you!"

Cosmo's normally selfless nature was visibly crumbling under the temptation of a day out. "Really? Will…will y-you help me t-too, Tails?" she stammered, blushing furiously.

Tails chuckled. "Well, uh…I won't be much good at picking things out, but I suppose I could, uh, tell you what you look nice in…" He knew his face was now beetroot red as well.

"Thank you thank you thank you!" Cosmo exploded to life and rushed forward to hug him. "You're too good to me!"

Tails held his breath so her aroma wouldn't make him fall flat on his face. He pulled away and beckoned for her to follow. "Come on Cosmo! We'll eat a good breakfast, then I'll call everyone to tell them we're meeting at the town's entrance in about an hour. Is that enough time for you?"

"You're the one who knows how far it is! I'm fine with whatever you think, Tails!" Cosmo tittered on her feet in front of him. "Did you really mean what you said? Would you really give up so much for me?"

"Absolutely." Tails had never said anything with so much conviction. "Cosmo, life without you was just…unbearable."

She stepped towards him and took his hands in hers. "Remember you just told me not to change?" Cosmo pressed her lips against his cheek again, this time delivering a more lingering kiss. Then she whispered, "Don't you ever change either, Tails." She giggled and practically danced back into his living quarters.

"_I don't know what emboldens her to do that, but I'm definitely not complaining._" He smiled as he heard her sweet voice humming a tune, which was growing more distant by the second. There was no way Tails was letting Cosmo out of his sight for long ever again, so he followed, leaving the broken leftovers of his past behind.

* * *

"Your subordinates as requested, Commander." The spaceship had landed and Novemnine had returned, flanked by two men. She motioned for them to approach their superior.

"Septsiet at your service, sir." said the taller one, saluting smartly.

The second didn't move. Deczehn folded his arms and glared at him until he murmured, "Yeah yeah, all hail our gracious leader and all that." He raised his fingers to his forehead so lazily it looked like he was trying to smack himself.

"Octotto, you'd better get to work on improving that greeting or you might find I'm not so 'gracious' after all." Deczehn warned. He had never liked Octotto; the man always managed to discover a way to get out of line, but never enough for Deczehn to punish him. It was infuriating. He turned to the only woman on the entire ship to calm himself. "We've got it covered from here, Novemnine. You may take your leave."

"Of course, Commander." She saluted again and elegantly walked from the room. Deczehn felt a huge tsunami of rage skyrocket as he saw Octotto shamelessly checking out her backside. The 'did not like' opinion of him instantly twisted into 'absolutely hate'.

"_She's mine you creep!_" he seethed, wanting nothing more than to stuff the pervert's short frame into a missile launcher and blast him to the next planet. Unfortunately, 'Eyeing up a woman your Commander also happens to love' was not an offence that appeared in a ship's rule book. Octotto wasn't violating any laws, even though it was obvious he wanted to violate Novemnine.

Normally women weren't even permitted on interstellar missions, but Novemnine's exceptional mind had made the higher powers reconsider. Eventually she'd been assigned as Deczehn's assistant, but was not to get involved in any dangerous situation. So while the men were out in the field, Novemnine remained on board and kept in close contact with them, offering genius tactical exploitations.

Octotto was _still_ staring. "PAY ATTENTION!" Deczehn bellowed. "It's important we get this right, or we may well be spending another year fruitlessly searching! We wouldn't want that, would we?"

Septsiet remained silent, understanding the question was rhetorical. Octotto somehow failed to realise this. "God no, don't make me waste any more of my time with you two. Although I wouldn't mind spending quite a while with our last crewmember…"

Deczehn was tempted to say 'What, about two minutes?' but restrained himself. There was no time for pointless quips. He was a professional. "The plan is very simple. We approach the signal of regeneration energy unseen. When we arrive, Septsiet will scout the area for signs of life. The best outcome is if we can sneak in, steal the technology, and get out. Easy. If stealth isn't an option, we take out nearby targets by tranquilising them. Did you hear that, Octotto? _Tranquilise_, not kill. Killing is only authorised when we're spotted, and even then only if they become hostile. We try and talk our way out of it first, then knock them out when they're off guard again. Any questions?"

"Why didn't we just land right next to the signal? You know, actually save some time." Octotto snapped.

"Are you kidding?! The last time we tried that, the natives were all over us! It was a nightmare! Or has your puny mind forgotten?"

"Meh, I don't remember it what well. After all, I was the only one who didn't get beaten up!" Octotto declared proudly.

"That's because you_ ran away_. You coward! You talk a big game but when it comes to getting your hands dirty, your legs do all the moving! I wish I'd abandoned you for desertion! Mark my words, I _will_ leave you behind if it happens again!"

"…Whatever."

Deczehn fumed but kept himself in check. "What about you, Septsiet? Any qualms with the plan?"

"It's not my job to question you, sir." he replied in his ever-reliably monotone voice. He was a model soldier, but Deczehn actually wanted another male with whom to casually banter, because he had to be serious far too often and Octotto was just impossible.

Deczehn gestured openly. "Yes, but I'm free to suggestions on how to improve my actions."

"How about acting on your little crush before I nab her instead?" Octotto mocked.

"_What?! Is it really that noticeable?_" Deczehn frowned. "Crush? I don't know what you're talking about." he lied.

"Oh, I think you do. She's a pretty little thing, isn't she?"

Deczehn growled. "Listen to me you runt, if you even _try_ and touch -"

"I think the plan will work just fine." Septsiet said loudly. It was the first time he'd ever interrupted his commander, but Deczehn realised it had been necessary in order to stop unhelpful strain being placed upon the group. He suddenly sensed that Septsiet possessed much more intelligence and individual thought than he let on.

Deczehn took a moment to compose himself. "Excellent. Let's move out!"

**Septsiet is pronounced 'Sept-see-et' and Octotto is pronounced exactly as it looks, 'Oct-ott-o'.  
These four characters' names might sound odd, but if you are familiar with the very basics of a few languages you may be able to spot the literal English meaning of each one. The literal translations are actually pretty stupid...**


	11. Chapter 11: Spanners In The Works

"Oh my…this is amazing!" Tails smirked as he listened to Cosmo say the same thing for the third time. They had just arrived at the grand square in the shopping centre, which was packed with people of all ages, shapes and sizes.

Tails was actually slightly disappointed that so many others were around. He wouldn't have minded if there were about the normal amount of people, but the place was getting to the point where you nearly had to shout to be heard; not exactly an ideal setting for the quality time he wanted to spend with Cosmo and his friends. "I agree, but to be honest it's not usually quite this full."

"It's a Friday afternoon, buddy!" came Sonic's barely comprehensible remark through a mouthful of chilli dog he'd bought at the entrance. "Combine that with this baking hot weather and you've got yourself a recipe for mobs of girls buying summery dresses and mobs of guys staring at the girls! What did you expect?"

Tails sighed. "Probably should've thought of this beforehand. Sorry Cosmo."

She looked at him like he was crazy. "Why are you apologising? This is wonderful! So many people! It must be like having one big family!"

Knuckles shook his head at her naivety. "Not really. Believe me, you need to stick with your friends. You can't trust anyone these days, and some species hate each other by default simply because of things that have happened in the past."

Cosmo looked crestfallen. Tails shot the echidna an angry look. "Be considerate, Knuckles! Cosmo isn't familiar with civilisation on this scale. It's true you've got to be careful, but most people are sincere. In a lively atmosphere like this you'll find near enough everyone's in a good mood anyway." he assured her.

Cream piped up. "I still can't believe you're here Cosmo! It's so great you're still the same polite-natured plant!"

Cosmo smiled sweetly. "You're really nice to be around too, Cream. Thank you!"

"So Cosmo, where do you want to go first?" Tails asked.

"She wants to go shopping for outfits with me!" Amy cut in. She wasn't one to stay quiet for long.

Tails knew Cosmo's peaceful demeanour wouldn't allow her to refuse, even if she didn't want to try on the fifty million items Amy would undoubtedly force upon her. "She can make up her own mind!"

Amy's eye twitched. "I _said_ she's coming with me!" Cosmo backed off a little, visibly afraid that a huge hammer might materialise from nowhere.

Usually Tails would have backed out from the moment the pink hedgehog opened her mouth, but when it came to Cosmo's independence and pride he would stop at nothing to defend her. "Amy, this is Cosmo's first full day back! So we're doing whatever she wants to do!"

Amy narrowed her eyes and growled in a way that would make a serial killer tremble. Cosmo held her head in her hands and moaned. "Please stop! I want you to stop fighting! I can't stand conflict anymore! It - it hurts my heart…" She bit her lip.

Tails knew terrible memories of her past were flooding through her. He abandoned the unwinnable argument against his impossible opponent and pulled her into a hug. "Push the pain away, Cosmo. No tears today, alright?"

He heard her suck in a deep breath. "No tears." she repeated. "Thank you Tails."

The fox glared at Amy. Amy glared back. This psychological battle raged until Cosmo finally said, "Amy, I was going to say I wanted to go with you anyway."

Amy twirled on the spot. "Oh good! Now I don't have to go all smashy-smashy on your boyfriend!"

"Boyfriend?!" Tails and Cosmo chorused. They glanced at each other but quickly turned away, neither one wanting the other to see their tinted cheeks.

"Oh come on, don't act like you haven't thought about it! Am I going to have to physically push you together?" Amy grilled them. "I remember that time when -"

"SO KNUCKLES, ARE WE GONNA GET YOU SOME NEW DIGGING CLAWS OR WHAT?" Sonic yelled over his admirer. "GREAT, LET'S GO!"

"Wait, what the -" Knuckles began, but the rest of his sentence was lost to the wind as Sonic had grabbed his arm and sped off.

After a few tense seconds, Amy began to shake. "He was supposed. To come. With me. So he could tell me. How I looked. In a new dress."

"Um…Amy?" Cream said in an unstable voice.

"…It's not fair. IT'S NOT FAIR IT'S NOT FAIR IT'S NOT FAIR!" Amy bawled until she had tears running down her face. "WHY?! SONIIIIIIIIC!"

To Tails' immense surprise it was Cosmo who hurried forwards and hugged her. "Please calm down, Amy. One day Sonic might see what a wonderful heart you have, even if you get a bit…upset sometimes."

"There are people here too." Cream added in a whisper. "Don't make a scene."

Tails was stunned again when this somehow pacified Amy. She wiped her eyes. "Oh Cosmo, you're just saying that to make me feel better. And annoyingly it's working. So let's shop before I start thinking about that blue wonder again." She walked away to the nearest clothes store with Cream close behind.

"I can't believe that worked!" Tails said to Cosmo.

"Neither can I!" She giggled and extended a hand towards him. "So, are you coming? Will you tell me if I look nice in what I try on?"

"_You'll look beautiful in anything._" he thought. "How could I refuse?" he asked aloud before taking her hand and following the two girls into the shop. To his relief he saw Amy already deeply infatuated with a shocking pink dress; perhaps she'd love it more than Sonic and stop babbling on about him.

"Looks like I'm fending for myself…" Cosmo said sadly. It was evident that it would take a long while for Amy to stop thinking about her own appearance.

"Here, I'll help you Cosmo." came a high-pitched voice behind them. They turned and spotted Cream holding a predominantly green dress that would no doubt make Cosmo shine even more than usual.

She clapped her hands together in happiness. "Thank you so much, Cream! I'll put that on right away!" She went off in search of the changing rooms. Upon finding it she left Tails and Cream stood outside, waiting for her to emerge.

They exchanged jokes about Amy's unpredictable persona, but soon found themselves standing in an unsettling silence. Tails didn't know the reason why he felt so uncomfortable; something about it just made it feel like the air itself had stopped moving. He could tell Cream was sensing it too, and he feared she had picked out a dress quickly so she could talk to him about something she couldn't voice in front of Cosmo. Unfortunately he found he was correct a moment later when Cream attempted to casually ask, "So Tails, um…do you, uh, like Cosmo?"

"Of course I like her." he replied just as nonchalantly, deliberately avoiding the deeper connotations of the question. "She's one of my best friends."

"No, I mean…do you _like_ her?"

"I just told you."

"Stop it Tails! You know what I mean! I'm not a baby anymore! I want to be included in grown-up conversations now and I want to know how you feel!"

This sudden outburst shocked Tails. Cream had battled through far more than anyone her tender age should have to endure, so she was naturally a little more mature. However, he definitely hadn't expected her to actively go against him. She was in the right, of course, but Tails couldn't remember the last time the rabbit had stood up for herself when everyone else, including her own friends, had passed her off as unprepared. "Cream, I understand you're not as innocent anymore but please don't shout. And why are you so interested?"

Now it was Cream's turn to go defensive. "N-no reason! I just know you both like to spend lots of time with each other." Her face hardened again. "But I still want to know! Do you like – no – do you _love_ Cosmo?"

Tails had no idea how to respond. Of course he loved Cosmo, he loved her with every fibre of his being, but he wanted to be the one to tell her that first. It wasn't that he didn't trust Cream's honest standing; it was that he couldn't risk Amy's gossiping mouth worming that same honesty out of her. "Look, I -"

"Ta-da!" He was saved by the newly clothed Cosmo springing into sight. And what a sight she was. Tails instantly forgot the argument about the avoidance of his feelings towards the girl in front of him. His heart skipped so many beats he thought he might be having a heart attack. He knew he was staring, but his eyes couldn't stop drinking her in. Cosmo eventually approached him nervously. "W-what do you think, Tails?"

Every synonym of the word 'beautiful' fought to get out of his mouth at the same time. He swallowed to gain control of himself before simply saying, "You look stunning."

Cosmo blushed heavily. "I like it too." And so she bought it.

During the next two hours, Tails' face was like a traffic light: he intermittently turned red whenever Cosmo tried something on, orange was his face when it went back to normal and although he knew he probably didn't physically go green, he certainly felt like it after seeing some of the things which Amy showcased. By the time they'd reached the final shop Cosmo had a healthy number of items all courtesy of Amy's purse, Cream had a few things courtesy of herself, and Tails guessed that Amy's tremendous strength when wielding her hammers was owed to many hours of hefting fifty bags at a time around in public.

It was in this final shop where Cosmo herself chose a deep blue dress to try on. When she emerged with another "Ta-da!" Tails nearly fainted. He barely stopped himself from blurting out the three words he wanted to tell her so badly right there and then. The dress was simply amazing. It wasn't just how it fit her figure so perfectly or how the detailed flower patterns went hand in hand with her heritage; in fact the most striking feature wasn't on the dress at all. It was her eyes. The effect with which the dress matched and complimented Cosmo's already beautiful ocean blue eyes was hypnotising. "How do I look, Tails?"

"…There aren't words." he answered honestly. "Please let me buy this for you."

"I don't want to be a bother, Tails…I've already been selfish enough to allow Amy to get me so many wonderful things."

"This won't bother anyone, least of all myself! I really want to buy this for you; you've made me so happy today, I need to give something back. Please, Cosmo."

She looked like she might resist again, but then suddenly hopped up and down on the spot beaming at him. She ran towards him and literally jumped into his arms. "Thank you! You've made me so happy so many times today too! You always have done…"

Tails left the shop high as a kite.

In the end the four of them returned the main square. He vaguely realised he hadn't actually got anything for himself, but he didn't care. Unfortunately the peace didn't last for long when Sonic and Knuckles returned. They were still out of earshot, but it was obvious Knuckles was yelling. "– that guy talking about, you can't trial the claws on the shop walls?! What a ridiculous rule! I should have trialled them on his face!"

Tails was more worried about Amy. He could practically feel the rage growing stronger for every step Sonic took. "YOU!" she screamed when he was close enough to make a lunge for and grab. "YOU LEFT ME! NOW I'M GOING TO DRAG YOU TO MY HOUSE WHERE YOU'RE GOING TO WATCH ME TRY ON EVERY! SINGLE! OUTFIT!"

Sonic couldn't pull free, such was the grip Amy had achieved. "C-come on Ames, let's just talk about this...how about if I buy you a pretty necklace?"

"How dare you try to bribe me?! Just for that you're going to have to give me even more detailed opinions when I try them all on TWICE!"

Tails thought Sonic might actually cry. "No! Please!"

The fox saved him when he remembered something. "Amy, wait! I need Sonic and Knuckles round at my house to help clean up my workshop. That's if you two aren't doing anything else, of course."

Knuckles shrugged. "Alright, I don't mind. So long as I'm back on Angel Island by nightfall so I can guard the Master Emerald. It's _him_ you're gonna have trouble getting hold of."

Amy cackled. "That's right, 'cause _I've _got hold of him! So Tails, what's in it for me?"

Tails smirked, already having prepared for a ransom. "I'll tell you who wrote all those notes and left them in your house."

Amy's evil grin dropped faster than a burning Egg Carrier. "You _know_ who was insolent enough to do that?! TELL ME TELL ME TELL ME!"

"Hang on. Notes in Amy's house?" Sonic was predictably confused. Cosmo looked lost as well and Knuckles shook his head, accepting that this was just going to be an antic he'd never get his head around.

"I'll explain later." Tails said. "So Amy – do we have a deal?"

Ever so slowly, Amy released her grip on her hero. "Fine." she said grudgingly. "But remember this. If you fail to deliver the truth…" She walked towards him and stopped only when her face was inches from his. She spoke the rest of her threat in a terrifying whisper. "…smashy-smashy..."

Tails watched her pick up her bags and calmly walk away. "_So I can say I did it or not say anything at all. Great._ _I've got a feeling I'm going to get smashed whether I tell her the truth or not…_"

"Phew!" Sonic wiped his brow. "Way to get me out of an impossible situation! First Eggman and now even Amy; you've got some nice negotiation skills, bud!"

"Can I come your house too Tails?" Cream asked. "It's just nearly everyone else is."

"Yeah, why not? And I suppose it'd be really unfair to leave Amy out."

Sonic's eyes widened. "Tails, I really don't think -"

"It'll be fine; I can always threaten to not tell her about the notes."

"Yeah, tell me about that while we go back to your place! What's all this secrecy with notes in her house?"

Tails smiled. "You're gonna love this…"

* * *

Rouge kicked open the door to an old storage room. It was the perfect spot for hiding things; a place where no-one would look and a place where near enough anything was easy to conceal. Eggman's mobile base had quite a few of these rooms, but she had no idea what he did with them. More than likely they'd been relegated to a scrapyard for failed robots which couldn't defeat Sonic or make satisfactory sandwiches.

"Sure is dusty in here." she said aloud. Rouge hoped that she was talking to herself because of how eerie the room was and not because she was insane. In here she had already hidden the Mowarium that Knuckles had successfully smuggled out for her. Now that she also had the bands of jewellery into which the small pieces of Mowarium would be inserted, she just had to collect it and carefully attach the pieces. "I'll be even more gorgeous than ever before."

Of course, the copious amounts of dust gathering on the Mowarium pieces would never do, so she'd put them in a safe that looked about as ancient as some of Eggman's jokes. Still, it was functional and would keep the fragments glowing a lovely green.

As she crossed the room to the safe, Rouge thought back on her journey through the base to get to this room. For her it was very uneventful, but from what she could hear, someone else certainly had a lot going on. A voice that sounded similar to Tails' had been screaming curses and sobbing. It was obviously Heads being subjected to some horrific experience by Eggman that would somehow make him hate the real Tails.

Aside from all the yelling, she had also had no choice in hearing truckloads of banging on some sort of metallic surface. Was Eggman teaching him to fight? She shuddered. "_I don't know what Eggman's doing to him up there and I don't want to know either…but the fat man's plan is definitely working._ _God only knows what sort of stunt he'll pull with Heads when he's finished with him._" She was a thief and very manipulative, yes, but being ecstatic about torturing an animal so it hates its own twin? She wasn't sure if she should just grab the Mowarium, get out and never go near Eggman again.

She pushed the unpleasant thoughts away and forced herself to be positive. Rouge twiddled with the safe's dial until it reached the correct combination. "Here I come, my pretties!" She opened the safe door.

And gasped. "W-what?! How the hell?!" she spluttered.

The Mowarium was gone.

* * *

"_This _is the place? A bit modest, don't you agree?" Octotto said at a volume that, considering the circumstances, might as well have been a passing jumbo jet.

"Quiet!" Deczehn scalded him in a whisper. "We can't afford to make any noise until Septsiet confirms there are no life forms nearby. And you shouldn't be focusing on the setting; notice how some of the house looks like it's been burned? Perhaps the people operating the machine couldn't keep it under control and it blew up."

"Yeah, thanks for the heads-up, gramps." Octotto snapped. "I _really_ would never have noticed that half the place looked like the site of a nuclear meltdown."

Deczehn and his pathetic excuse for a subordinate were hiding in some tall grass mere feet away from where the regeneration energy had originated. He had to admit, Octotto had a point – he'd also been expecting a huge laboratory that would be nightmarishly difficult to infiltrate, but all they'd found was this small house in the middle of nowhere. As of yet Septsiet had found no-one living near it either, although Deczehn could hardly blame them now, since there had obviously been a recent incident of some sort. "It's almost too easy…"

"Good for us. Let's get in there, salvage whatever technology we can find and fly merrily back home where we'll be congratulated with medals and tons of money and faster spaceships and all the women we can -"

"Silence! The secret to being a good commander is to prepare for every eventuality." Deczehn lifted his communicator to his mouth and spoke into it quietly. "Novemnine, is everything alright on your end? Any tactical advice?"

"_I've got you on radar._" he heard the reply. "_The ship's in good shape for a quick escape, and you're doing a fine job so far on your own, Commander. I feel the only thing I should say is that I honestly think it would now be best to lie in wait until a resident arrives, seeing as the machine will probably be wrecked. Then capture and question them. In my opinion this is a much more efficient method than gathering shattered remains and trying to piece them back together. It's up to you, Commander._"

"You are the expert thinker. I trust in your judgement, Novemnine." Deczehn lifted a second communicator. "Septsiet, slight change of plan. We're only going in to have a look around, but don't touch anything whatsoever. When someone returns, we'll ambush them and use whatever measures necessary to gain information about the machine. Can you confirm there's no-one around?"

"_Understood about the plan change. And yes, I think it's all – no wait, negative! Negative! Several life forms are approaching from the east!_"

Deczehn lifted himself up a few inches to get a better view before cursing under his breath. _"Grrr! Why are there so many? Hedgehogs, a fox, a rabbit…where did they all come from?! Damn! There's no way we can take them all out without being spotted!"_ His mind whirled, trying desperately to form a new plan, although for some reason all his brain was doing was wondering why the natives were carrying so many bags.

Then, just when things couldn't get worse, Octotto started complaining. "There's got to be six of them at least! I _told _you we should've gone in earlier! What do we do now?!"


	12. Chapter 12: The Nightmare Returns

Cosmo hummed an upbeat tune while she paced excitedly up and down Tails' living room. He had offered to build a house for her! Right next door! Her heart was soaring in the clouds and possibly out to the moon.

After the initial bustle of temporarily storing Cosmo's clothes in the spare room and sorting out who'd be doing what with regard to cleaning up his workshop, Tails had made Cosmo and himself a cup of tea. He'd asked to be left in peace with her for a few minutes, so everyone else had headed to the site of the explosion. Knuckles was handling all the heavy lifting, Sonic literally ran everything's transportation to the nearest rubbish dump and Amy had been assigned with repairing damages on the actual integrity of the house; apparently another favour Tails wanted if he was going to tell her who was responsible for the notes. Even Cream was helping – she had insisted upon cleaning any particularly stubborn burn marks on the walls.

With everyone else hard at work, Tails had simply sat down next to her and came out with the suggestion. "Hey Cosmo, I'd be more than happy with letting you stay here as long as you like, but you probably want a place of your own, don't you? How about if I build a house next to this one? Then you could fill it with flowers and live however you wanted!" He hadn't sounded nervous at all; Cosmo wished she could ask him something as thoughtful as that without her brain turning into a hyperactive blender.

She was, however, initially concerned with how much physical and mental strain he'd endured lately. "That's a wonderful offer Tails, but you're going to overwork yourself!" she'd tried to inform him. "Besides, you've got enough problems with your own home at the minute…"

"It'll be fixed in no time." he had assured her. "I'd like to finally have a next door neighbour, especially when she's a wonderful plant girl with such a pure heart!"

How could she have possibly refused? She'd wrapped her arms around him and savoured his embrace. "Oh, thank you! You'll make a perfect neighbour for me as well!" Cosmo had felt a powerful urge to kiss his lips, but hadn't acted on it – she was only going to drive him away if she so rapidly gave away how deep her feelings for him ran. Instead, she'd made do with planting a long one on his cheek.

And now here she was. Tails had left to rewire the enormous steel door and reset the password to his workshop, promising he'd be back soon. She still couldn't believe it; the guy who made her heart sing was showering her with gifts and affections. For the first time, Cosmo truly allowed herself to imagine that Tails loved her. The mere thought made her giddy. "_You're my whole life now, Tails. I want nothing more than to live in peace and happiness with you._" she dreamed. "_Oh, but I don't know if I have the courage to tell you how much I want to hold you! If you love me too, please tell me…_"

Cosmo realised she was still dancing around his sofa. The muscles in her legs wanted to collapse on it after a long day on her feet, but the adrenaline rush provided by the mutual bonding wasn't going to let that happen anytime soon. Eventually she heard footsteps coming downstairs and a few seconds later Tails re-entered the room. "Are you done? Did you fix it?" she asked.

"Fix what?"

Cosmo frowned. "The door." she clarified. "That steel door which leads to your workshop."

"Hm? Oh yes, of course I have. Sorry about that." Tails sat down on the sofa somewhat stiffly.

"Is there something wrong? You look a little on edge."

"No, everything's fine." Then he jumped right back up off the sofa, closed the window and locked it. He saw Cosmo's confused look. "Gets chilly in here sometimes." he explained, even though it was barely six o' clock and the sun was still out. Tails went back to fidgeting on a nearby chair.

Cosmo knew there was evidently something bothering him, but if he wouldn't tell her, she didn't mind. She'd just have to make him feel better instead. Making her voice sound as girlish as she could, she asked, "So…what's the password, Tails?" Cosmo didn't honestly expect him to tell her; she just wanted to have a playful conversation.

"Password?"

"To the door! Aren't you listening to what I'm saying?"

"Passwords aren't meant to be shared." he said coldly.

Cosmo's previously overjoyed heart now felt like it had a puncture in it. His sudden ignorance and unexplained lack of trust in her was hurting her somewhere very, very deep. "Tails, please tell me what's on your mind. Did Amy hurt your feelings?"

Tails ignored the question. "It doesn't matter. I'm fine." The fox got up again and started searching shelves.

"What are you doing?"

Tails growled in frustration. "Do you remember where I put the key to the front door?"

Cosmo was now genuinely concerned he was suffering from an extreme kind of short term memory loss. "Don't you always keep it behind that picture?" She pointed to a framed image that warmed her heart; it depicted her and Tails standing against an otherwise plain background. Just the two of them, smiling and holding hands. A picture which she hoped would act as a representation for the foundation of the rest of her life.

Then Tails went and carelessly knocked it off while reaching for the keys. It hit the stone fireplace below and the glass shattered. "No!" Cosmo cried. She rushed over and wiped away the shards of glass on the picture. The frame, a lovely frame with flowers adorning the sides, was also cracked. "This was my favourite picture…but you can fix the frame and replace the glass, can't you Tails?"

"Meh. I'll deal with it later." He walked to the front door and locked it.

Tears filled Cosmo's eyes. "_Ten minutes ago he wanted me to permanently live right next to him; I thought he might have been falling for me too! What have I done since then to upset him that he'd be so indifferent towards our friendship? I think I'm going to cry…_" Noises started involuntarily escaping her mouth. "W-why are you locking the d-door?" she quietly asked through hiccups.

"Security." he answered simply, as though that explained why the back door in his kitchen was wide open. He put the keys back in the wrong place.

Cosmo didn't know what to do. She decided to try a last resort that would hopefully pull him out his foul mood; for the first time since the near decimation of her race, she deliberately thought about her family. Instantly the raw despair struck, but that was exactly what she wanted. If Tails saw her in true floods of tears, he would surely snap out of it and comfort her.

She allowed the negative feelings to flow, everyone she had ever known exterminated in the blink of an eye. It was actually helping in a way because she had always bottled up her sadness, where it then stayed churning inside her body and eating her from the inside. It had been too long since she had cried over her family's death to release the pain.

An image of Galaxina appeared in her mind's eye and that was it. She collapsed onto the sofa and curled into a ball, screaming in emotional agony. The feelings were so disturbingly strong that she almost forgot why she was doing it. "T-Tails…p-please…help m-me…" This wasn't an act anymore. If he didn't hold her close now, Cosmo thought she might die.

Tails stood there looking mortified. "I, uh…I'll get you a drink. And something to eat, maybe. People get hungry here, don't they?" He walked away into the kitchen.

He hadn't consoled her. He didn't love her. And her family was dead. They couldn't love her. "_No-one loves me…_" The air felt thousands of times heavier. Nothing could stem the additional pain of his rejection.

Rejection. Why was that word suddenly ringing bells in her head? All she wanted to do was cry, but her instincts were telling her this was important. Cosmo forced herself to sit up and wiped away the tears. It must have helped, because an epiphany came over her. She had heard Tails come downstairs to get to this room. But the single workshop entrance was also downstairs. She hadn't seen him go upstairs beforehand and he had no need to anyway; how had he ended up coming downstairs?

There was another thing nagging at the back of her mind. She sensed this was even worse. What had Tails said before he'd gone into the kitchen? Something about it had been very, very wrong. She thought hard to remember. "_I'll get you a drink. And something to eat. People get hungry here, don't they?_"

Cosmo's heart stopped. "_People get hungry here, don't they?_" Those words brought the truth crashing down on her. She had to get out.

She scrambled up from the sofa and rushed to the front door, but it wouldn't open. Then she remembered it was locked. She searched the table where Tails had incorrectly replaced the keys, but they weren't there. He'd taken them with him.

Pieces of Tails' strange behaviour suddenly make terrifying sense. Why would he have to take the front door keys out to the kitchen? Was he moving them elsewhere? But Cosmo knew that wasn't right. He had locked the door. He had locked the window. And now he'd taken the keys so nobody else could open them. All along he had been gradually blocking off all means of escape.

Just as she twisted around to race out of the only other exit, the kitchen, 'Tails' came back thorough and shut the door behind him.

"It's YOU!" she gasped.

'Tails' nodded slowly. "I heard you rattling the door. I thought you might have realised. Me and my big mouth, eh? Missed me?"

This was the Tails from her world before this one, that seemingly inescapable nightmare where everything was hopeless. Cosmo now recognised he must have been regenerated along with her. The consumption of food hadn't been necessary in that world; his unusual comment about people having to eat here had given the game away.

Cosmo was terrified, but curiosity somehow won over. "Tell me who you truly are! How did you even exist with me in that world? Why are you pretending to be Tails?!"

'Tails' spat on the floor. "Don't you _dare _mention me in the same sentence as that slimy piece of filth! I am _not _Tails! My name is Heads, and I'm going to make Tails suffer for the rest of his days!"

"But why?" Cosmo had a feeling Heads wouldn't listen to reason if the six letters pranced around him waving maracas, but she had to try. "You've never even met him!"

"The Doctor has told me all about him, don't you worry. And to think that you love him…ha! Such stupidity!"

Cosmo shook her head vigorously. "No, you have to listen to me! Tails is the kindest person I've ever met. I know you're referring to Doctor Eggman and whatever he's told you, they're all malicious lies! He -"

Heads dived forward blindingly fast, grabbed her by the throat and shoved her up against a wall, completely cutting off all air to her hungry lungs. "Stop trying to buy time for your precious boyfriend to arrive and rescue you! I'll exact my revenge on him later. Oh, I can't wait…I'm going to beat his body raw and grind down his soul and until he's as empty and cold as he made me!"

"_NO!_" Cosmo was panicking and her legs flailing, but he was too strong. Much stronger than his build would ever suggest. His grip did loosen slightly when he saw she was unable to breath, but only enough for her to choke, "D-don't hurt him, please! I'm begging you! " What happened to her was very much a secondary concern, because Tails had sacrificed his entire life for six months just to give her another chance to live in happiness; it would be despicably unfair for him to suffer any more than with the cruel cards which life had already dealt him. "You c-can't hurt him, I love him!" she rasped. "Hurt me instead!"

"If you say so…" Heads smashed her against the wall and her vision instantly blurred. He clamped a powerful hand over her mouth and began to drag her into the kitchen.

"_Where's he taking me?!" _Through eyes which were still making everything look like an illusion,Cosmo somehow saw the now repaired steel door about twenty feet away in the hallway. "_Where's Tails? He said he'd come back when he'd finished!_" She struggled despite her throbbing head and somehow managed to wrench Heads' hands away long enough for her to scream "TAILS! HELP ME!"

Then she remembered. The door was soundproof…and everyone was in there. She cursed her abysmal luck just as Heads grabbed her from behind and wrapped both arms crushingly around her neck. She heard his voice echo in her ears. "Do that again, and I'll make you regret having nerves in your body." he quietly warned.

She knew she had to do as she was told. This, of course, only petrified her more. "Where are you taking me?" she squeaked, her voice refusing to be brave.

Although she couldn't see Heads behind her, she could almost hear his grin as he dragged her out the back door. "You've got an appointment with the Doctor."

* * *

Doctor Eggman was nervous. He'd never been on edge for so long, listening to Heads' attempt to kidnap Cosmo through a hidden microphone attached to the fox's body. Fidgeting was a habit the self-proclaimed genius rarely did, but then again he figured that ordering an insane animal to capture his twin's girlfriend didn't happen often either. Unless it was an absolute necessity he never relied on anyone else to do things for him, but in this case even his mighty brain could fathom no other option; Cosmo had to trust her kidnapper first.

He was also furious. Eggman couldn't believe how quickly Heads had given away his true identity. He'd breathed a sigh of relief when he heard him successfully capture her, which was of course the plan all along, but it was still somewhat annoying - Heads now had a reason to ignore Eggman's tactical advice, which could in turn result in disaster for his master plan. "_He won't listen to a word I say about being more careful from now on!_"

Nevertheless, Heads had done his job. Sat in one of his small, airborne capsules, Eggman was waiting impatiently in a concealed spot outside Tails' house, and it wasn't long before the Doctor spotted his approach, carrying extra luggage in the form of plant life. Heads took off using his twin tails and flew to the agreed meeting place, where he finally arrived and dumped Cosmo in with Eggman.

"Ow!" Cosmo yelped.

Eggman pressed a button to imprison her in a magnetic field. "Shut it, organic mutant!" He turned his attention immediately to Heads. "You idiot! How was it even possible for you to blow your own cover that fast? It was like you were giving hints on a game show out there!"

"Hey, I brought her here though, didn't I?"

Eggman growled. "I _knew_ you'd say that; that's not the point! If you make another blunder as unbelievably idiotic again, I won't give you your reward!"

Heads clenched his fists. "If you won't give Tails to me, I'll just find my own way to capture him."

"Oh really? But do you think you have what it takes without my help?" Eggman grinned. This was one of the many things at which he excelled – convincing people to do things his way with mere words. "It'd be so much easier if you had my support…"

He actually saw the temptation win just before Heads said "Fine. But you'd better let me completely destroy his life!"

"NO!" Cosmo screamed. "Heads, Eggman is feeding you lies! What happened to the shy boy who for six months I was so convinced was the real Tails? You were always so passive; Eggman has manipulated your mind so it only knows hatred! I was once also fuelled only by a desire to harm the ones who harmed me, and it's not living your life! Tails isn't even the one who hurt you! Please Heads, you can still turn your life around – if not for yourself, then for me…"

Eggman did not interrupt because he knew he didn't need to. When he'd started experimenting on Heads, the results had been far better than anything he could have hoped for. The fox had been incredibly susceptible to the mind games Eggman had played. Heads was too far gone; nothing in the universe would quench his thirst for raw vengeance until Tails hit rock bottom.

For a moment, Heads almost seemed to consider accepting Cosmo's words as the truth. Then, as Eggman knew he would, he yelled "No! I can't let go of it!"

The Doctor heard Cosmo break down in tears behind him. He chuckled. "A touching essay, plant girl. But no-one will stop us now! Heads will have his revenge and I will rule -" His phone rang. Annoyed at his world domination speech being cut short, he snatched it up and irritably said, "What is it?"

"_It's Shadow."_

Eggman laughed. "Before you tell me, I know the Chaos Emerald is in Tails' house; my radar alerted me ages ago."

"_Fair enough. But did you realise Sonic and Knuckles are in there too, along with Cream and Amy?"_

"They are?" Eggman groaned. "Just when something goes right, something else chucks all my hard work back in my face!"

"_There's more, Doctor. Something…unexpected._"

This got his attention. He frowned and spoke slowly. "And what might that be?"

"_I'm hidden outside Tails' home and I was waiting for the person with the Emerald to emerge, but I happened to look around and I saw others lying in wait as well._"

"Others? Are you sure they're not just property developers or something?"

"_I think it's safe to say they're not involved in the housing market. They're like nothing I've ever seen before…they're still there right now, but I can't get a proper view; they're definitely trying to hide. This might sound crazy, but I think they're aliens."_

Eggman burst out laughing, "Aliens?! Have you recently discovered a needle with some unknown substance inside or something? You've been watching too many films, Shadow!"

"_Aliens or not, they're another problem we're going to have to deal with._" Shadow replied curtly.

The huge man slouched in his chair. "Ughh…more complications is the last thing my metabolism needs. Ok Shadow, I'm going to keep you on the line so I can explain to both you and Heads what we're going to do."

"_Go ahead."_ Heads nodded in concurrence.

"Right, first things first – do _not _try and figure out who those weirdoes are. I must admit I'm curious, but right now meddling with them is only going to cause more trouble. Heads, go and aid Shadow on the ground. When Tails and everyone else notice Cosmo's absence, they should split up looking for her. Use that to your advantage to figure out who has the Emerald. Ambush them, take it and run back to my base. I'll say it again; do _not_ start a fight with anyone whatsoever. Get the Emerald, get out. Understood?" Eggman finished.

"_Yes, Doctor._" came Shadow's reply. "_What about you?"_

I'm flying back to my base to bring out the robot I've been working on!" he said happily. "I've missed having a mobile killing machine at my disposal; I think you'll like some of the features! Since I'll have such power at my fingertips, I'll come back out and _then_ we can work on finding out who our mystery guests are!" He disconnected the call.

"My reward had better be worth all this effort." Heads said in a threatening manner.

Eggman shrugged. "I'll leave that one up to you. Well? What are you waiting for? Fly down there and help that hedgehog!"

Heads scowled at him, but did as he was told. Eggman chuckled as he watched the fox slowly disappear; he had told no-one his true intentions. The fact that he'd found the Mowarium which Rouge had tried to hide was a huge step towards his goal. And very soon, the creation of his own clone would be complete.


	13. Chapter 13: Observers Of Deceit

"I really appreciate all the help, guys." said a very satisfied Tails, his eyes skimming across the now spotless workshop. He stretched in fatigue before offering his arms out in front of him. "So who wants a hug?"

"No way!" cried Sonic and Knuckles in unison. The fox laughed; their reaction was always the same, but it got him every time. He knew they were ensuring no cracks appeared in their masculinity, which had personally never made any sense to him, but by now it was just another characteristic the two of them shared which actually ended up bringing them all closer together.

Cream ran forward. "Oh, pick me! Pick me!" He wasn't given any choice when she pulled him into a tight squeeze. Her personality was a total contrast to the guys', since she was ecstatic to accept any and all affections – but perhaps that was to be expected. "I'll always be here to help, Tails!"

The fox smiled and turned to the least predictable person he'd ever known. To his surprise Amy started walking towards him; Tails had guessed she would complain to Sonic about him never wanting to make similar contact with her. Her green eyes looked like they were plotting something…

Tails jumped away from her just in time. "Nice try, Amy! I know you weren't gonna let me go until I told you about those notes."

Amy pouted. "Is it so hard to believe that I just wanted to give a grateful friend a hug?" Tails raised his eyebrows. "…Alright, smarty pants. You win. But it doesn't change the fact we made a deal that you'd tell me now!"

Tails didn't want his workshop smashed up seconds after it had just been cleared, so he managed a nervous smile and said, "We'll discuss it when we're sat down, I promise. I need to get back to Cosmo, she's probably wondering what's taking me so long." He'd finished the repairs on the door about half an hour ago, but had been sucked into the conversation they were having while cleaning. He'd decided to stay and help everyone finish up. "Knuckles, close the door leading outside please."

The echidna nodded and pressed a button which lowered a virtually indestructible panel, cutting off access from the outside world. This second door was only operable from the inside and was the one all of them had been using to transport the debris away – Tails had figured Cosmo wouldn't want to see them lugging things out the front door every two minutes, and this method was faster anyway.

He was surprised how quickly they'd completed the job, but with five pairs of capable hands available it was never going to be a massively long slog. Strangely, it felt like a two tonne medallion had suddenly been removed from around his neck, and he didn't think it had anything to do with his shining workshop. "_I think I'm just happy to see that machine leave my life forever. It was my own creation and it returned Cosmo to me, but it would only remind me of those terrible months without her…"_

"Come on Tails, let us out already!" Sonic grumbled, tapping his foot. Impatient as ever. "Why do you even have this door password protected on the inside?"

Tails tilted his head as he realised that was actually a good question. "I don't really know – it just feels symmetrical. I like things to be ordered."

Amy grinned. "Shame you fell for a girl who's such a scatterbrain then!" He could see her incessant teasing was probably going to continue as long as he was in love with Cosmo, which he planned to be for the rest of his life. Better get used to it.

Firstly pressing a button to bring up a keypad, Tails then tried to enter his password. However, the total destruction of the old unit meant that the new one obviously didn't have a password at all yet. "_I should invent psychic control panels or something._" The password which his previous unit had accepted was a timeless one, one which he'd never changed throughout his entire life. His finger memory nearly made him automatically punch in the familiar five letters, but he stopped to reconsider. "_Here I am faced with a new beginning which involves the girl I love. Perhaps it's time for a change…"_

"Hurry it up!" Knuckles moaned. "I don't want to watch us grow old!"

"Just a minute!" What should the new password be…? Of course. He was ashamed he'd even had to think about it. He entered a new combination of characters and pressed enter. The huge door slid open so slowly it was like his house was being revealed as a prize in a TV show. Amy hurried out.

"Sweet freedom!" Sonic yelled. "I'm just gonna go do fifty laps of your garden, I'll be back in a sec."

And he was. "That's better. I'm a hedgehog reborn!"

Tails chuckled at his best friend's bottomless supply of optimism before calling out for her. "Cosmo?" No reply. "…Cosmo? Where are you?"

Amy ran back into the hallway looking like she'd seen Dark Oak's ghost. "Tails! Your front door and windows are locked and there's – there's blood on the wall…"

Tails' eyes widened. "What?! Show me!" He sprinted into his living room and examined the wall. "N-no...please no…" The blood was a deep green, still trickling slowly down the paint. He felt himself start to hyperventilate. "Please, n-not again, I can't do it again…I CAN'T DO IT AGAIN!"

He felt strong arms pull him into a hug. "Tails, you've got to calm down!" he heard Sonic's shaking voice in his ear.

But the disgusting emotions of hatred and self-loathing were rising once again, eager to resume their quest to break his soul. He repelled Sonic's contact. "Why did I leave her alone?! She's going to suffer yet again because of me! When will I stop hurting her? W-what if she's already dead?!" He knew he was going into a total meltdown, but he allowed it to consume him. "_It's what I deserve! No wonder Cosmo doesn't love me!_"

"TAILS!" Knuckles bellowed louder than the kitsune thought possible to shock him out of his stupor. "The quicker you calm down, the sooner we can find her!"

"He's right!" Amy began crying and ran forward to hug him. "P-please, I'm sorry for annoying you; let me help make everything better! I'm your friend, Tails!" He felt her tears splash into his fur.

For some reason, seeing Amy become so heartfelt and genuine in reaction to his distress changed something within him. His face hardened. "Yes, there's no point standing around! We need to split up and look for clues as to where she's been taken!"

Cream beamed at him, tears also in her eyes. "That's the spirit! We'll find her, I promise."

Knuckles shook his head and mumbled to himself. "Geez - why does everyone always well up?" He broke the front door off its hinges and they all piled outside.

Tails ignored the fact that Knuckles could have just asked for the spare keys in his pocket and got straight to the point. "We have to split up. Sonic, run to the nearest town and ask around; also have the police searching for her ASAP. Knuckles, you can -"

"STOP RIGHT THERE, CRIMINAL SCUM!" Suddenly three shapes exploded from nearby bushes, surrounding the group. Tails thought that after killing the girl he loved and then bringing her back half a year later, nothing in life could ever surprise him again. He was wrong.

The trio of 'people' who'd demanded they halt were bizarre, to say the least. Completely anthropometric with the exception of spiked body armour, they looked not dissimilar to a pack of wolves, except they possessed no tail and were bipedal. Most intriguing of all was the dim orb set within a decorated crown upon one of their heads. He was obviously the leader.

Knuckles was the first to stop gaping. "Who the hell are you guys?" he asked with a calmness Tails wasn't feeling at all. "And I'd think twice before calling me scum, if you value your kneecaps."

The crown-bearing animal seemed unfazed and gestured at himself. "I am Commander Deczehn and these are my associates, Septsiet and Octotto. We are members of the Galactic Order Legislation, or GOL, and we ensure all law in this galaxy is vigilantly followed…but I can see at least one of you holds no regard for it."

Amy scowled. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"We know you've been carrying out experiments with regeneration energy. Strictly forbidden for the moral issues it raises. You're all under arrest!"

"_You _uphold the law for this planet?" Sonic laughed. "Listen buddy, I've never heard of you guys or GOL before, and if you're so alert for people breaking the peace, then where have you been for the past God knows how long? This fat human called Eggman has been causing destruction on our planet since before I was born!"

The leader paused. "…I'm sorry if we can't deal with everything, but we're very busy."

Tails shook his head in despair; he was at the end of his tether. Cosmo had been taken away from him, and here he was, with his own freedom in jeopardy because a bunch of aliens he'd never met wanted to put him in jail. "My friend's just been assaulted and kidnapped!" he shouted, completely enraged. "So how about dealing with _that_?!"

A bead of sweat was now visible on the wolf's face. "You can – you can lodge an issue of your own after -"

"Deczehn!" interrupted the one the leader had introduced as Octotto. "They're not buying it. Whose idea was this 'law enforcer' stupidity?"

Deczehn whipped round. "What are you doing?!" he hissed. "I've got this covered!"

Octotto scoffed. "You really don't; for a guy so good under pressure, you cracked under their questioning far too easily." He walked towards Tails and addressed the group. "Congratulations - you all saw through our little ruse! Now, here's your reward!" He tore off his body armour to reveal an enormous gun.

Tails couldn't help screeching in fright. Even Knuckles looked like he might take back his kneecap threat. The wolf leader gasped. "Octotto, I said no guns! Why did you conceal that?"

A smile played on Octotto's lips. "You want the truth? Alright then. To be perfectly honest, I'm not interested in getting this regeneration energy. You've dragged me down for far too long, _Commander_." He turned the gun on Deczehn.

The leader did a double take. "W-what are you doing? Stop pointing that at me!"

"Isn't it obvious? I'm taking your crown, Deczehn. I'll unleash the power which you could never bring out!"

"You…you can't be serious!" The Commander finally seemed to realise he was being betrayed. "You wouldn't dare shoot me! I order you to put that down!"

Tails finally noticed the last wolf, Septsiet, as he stood in front of Deczehn to protect him. "Octotto!" he roared. "You've gone too far; I will not allow you to steal the Commander's orb! Place the gun aside and face me in -"

Octotto shot him.

The sound of the gun firing was absolutely deafening, but watching Septsiet fall dead to the ground brought about a silence Tails hadn't known since he had shot Cosmo. He wanted to run, to get out of this insane situation, but his legs were refusing to move. The rest of his friends were also rooted to the spot as they watched the murder unfold, and Tails knew they were feeling the same raw shock he was experiencing.

Tails didn't want to know how Deczehn felt. "You…you killed him…" the wolf stammered.

Octotto merely held out his hand. "The orb, Deczehn."

After a few more seconds of evident disbelief, he removed the crown with shaking hands. But his voice was strong. "You are a coward, Octotto. I'll make you pay for this, even if it takes the rest of my life!" The crown changed hands. "You _will_ be stopped." Deczehn carefully picked up his fallen comrade's body, turned and ran.

"That's right!" Octotto cackled. "Flee back to the ship and your precious Novemnine! I'll enjoy disposing of the both of you later! Now then…" Tails and his friends didn't dare move an inch for fear of being blasted, and could only observe as the mad wolf meticulously placed the orbed crown upon his head.

The orb began to glow. "HAHAHA! I _knew _I had the potential Deczehn never possessed!" He turned his maddened face to the Mobian group. "Do you know what this means, weaklings? Very soon, I will be in absolute control of each and every one of your tiny minds! This planet and eventually the entire galaxy will be enslaved for my purposes! I could just obliterate you all now, but I'm in a good mood, so I'll let you off the hook. You'll be seeing me soon, I guarantee it!" The shining orb must have already given him some kind of additional power, because seconds later he teleported away.

The silence which pervaded the group was painful as each one tried to figure out exactly what had just happened. Nobody moved, no-one spoke. Until Cream began to cry. "W-why did he kill his own kind?" she sobbed. "Why does everyone have to fight? I'm s-so tired of it!"

The group wordlessly gathered in a circle and huddled together, providing physical and emotional comfort for them all. "I'm sorry guys." Sonic said shamefully. "I should have done something…"

"My fists are usually ready to act, too." Knuckles admitted. "But we can't blame ourselves; we were all in shock and besides, there were obviously heavy rifts between those aliens. We play no part in how they resolve their problems."

Tails took a deep breath. "You're right; the important thing is we're all unhurt. We can continue searching for Cosmo as though that insanity never happened. I don't know how they were aware of the regeneration we performed, but if that nutter shows up again…well, we'll deal with him when we must." The fox's priority was still Cosmo's safety. She was his whole world, and he couldn't allow any misfortune to befall her.

Huddled together as they were, they were only able to see each other's concerned faces. Cream, however, seemed to hear something. "What's that buzzing noise?" she asked quietly.

The rest strained hard to listen. Tails couldn't sense it, but he wasn't surprised that Cream had picked up on it before everyone else, thanks to her oversized ears. Then he heard it. The rest must have simultaneously done so as well, because they all pulled out of the circle at the same time to see Bokkun flying towards them, trademark TV in his grasp.

"Not _him_!" Amy moaned. "More egghead is the last thing we need! Let's ignore him!"

Tails felt a terrible anger bubbling within him for the man who would soon be presented on the screen, but he recognised an opportunity to question him as to Cosmo's whereabouts. "Hang on." he stated as calmly as possible. "For once I actually want to hear what he has to say."

The flying robot landed roughly and nearly spilled the TV. "He wants…to talk to you…" Bokkun panted, leaning against the rim to catch his breath. "That distance was gruelling – I hope it's worth it!" He pushed a button and Eggman's face once again appeared to them.

Before anyone could react, Tails marched up to it and growled ferociously. "Do you have Cosmo?! Tell me where she is!"

Eggman held up his hands and chuckled. "Oh, fox boy. You're as obsessive as ever. I suppose if you're that desperate…yes, I have her." Tails was about to shout but Eggman cut in first. "She's safe, you fool! What benefits would I get if I hurt her for no reason, apart from seeing you cry like a baby? I didn't send Bokkun all that way just so we could discuss your romantic interests! Although I admit, I enjoy ordering him around." Bokkun grumbled and began the journey back to Eggman's base.

"I've had it up to _here_, Eggman!" Tails' fists were clenched. "Show Cosmo to me!"

"All in good time. Firstly, I'd like to say that if that Octotto guy shows up again, I'm with you in getting rid of him." Eggman clapped his hands together. "A nice little joint effort! He's as much of a threat to my plans as you are if he starts wreaking havoc!"

"I'd _never_ work with you ever again, not after the Metarex! You'd only -" Tails stopped when he realised something. "Just a minute…how do you know about what happened a few minutes ago?"

Eggman laughed a certain kind of laugh, a bone chilling sound which Tails knew signified the man was about to unveil a part of his plan of which they were completely unaware. "That's the other thing I wanted to chat about, Tails. A hidden microphone is being carried by one of my minions, who has been hiding nearby with Shadow all along! I heard everything; and now I think it's time for you to meet him."

"TAILS!" The kitsune heard a distant scream on Eggman's end, the voice of an angel stricken with fear.

He gasped. "COSMO! Show her to me, Eggman! Prove to me that she's safe!"

The Doctor shrugged. "Fair enough." He rotated the camera to reveal the Seedrian trapped within a frightening machine, wires attached to every part of her body.

"NO!" Tails screamed. "What are you going to do to her?! COSMO, HANG IN THERE!"

Cosmo was crying heavily. "Tails, I'm sorry for not telling you!" she sobbed.

"Huh?" Tails was extremely confused. "What haven't you told me?"

"The b-boy I met in that horrible world! He's the one who kidnapped me, and Eggman's made him want to fight you!" She completely broke down. "I'm s-so sorry, Tails! That boy…he's your -"

"I DON'T THINK SO!" yelled Eggman, quickly twisting the camera back towards himself. "I can't let your girlfriend spoil the sweet, sweet surprise! As for what I'm going to _do_ with the plant girl…well, I can't promise her safety."

Tails felt his heart erupt in despair. "NO! Please, I'm begging you, don't hurt her!"

"Hahaha! See how quickly you're reduced to begging for mercy! I'm afraid I can't comply with your pathetic pleading; and anyway, it's high time you met the guy who kidnapped her!" He grabbed a nearby phone and dialled a number. "…Shadow? Buy some time for me and bring back the Chaos Emerald! Oh, and tell me what Tails' face looks like when he sees him!" The fat man smirked as he ended the call. "I'll see you around, fox boy. Or I'll be seeing one of you, at least…" The transmission ended.

The conversation had raised more questions than it had answered, including why Eggman was still so convinced Tails had a Chaos Emerald, but right now his only concern was rescuing the love of his life. "Guys, we've got to move before Shadow gets here! Cosmo will be -"

"Too late, Tails." said a very familiar voice. He turned around to see Shadow walking towards them. But it wasn't the hedgehog who had spoken; it was the person with him. Tails could only stare in disbelief as he watched himself approach.

**Phew...that was a pretty unpleasant chapter. We'll encounter the murderer Octotto again later.**


	14. Chapter 14: The Manipulator

Eggman puffed in short, sharp breaths while running through the corridors of his base. "I really need…to work out…more often…" he panted. As soon as the transmission with Tails had ended, he'd immediately gone to complete his own regeneration machine. Or perhaps a better name in this case, his cloning machine. The Mowarium he'd stolen back from Rouge had been incorporated and it was finished. However, there had been no time for admiring his creation; time was not on his side, because he still had much to do before his master plan was in full swing. So he had carefully taken some of his own DNA, placed it in the central chamber and activated the machine.

He hadn't waited to see the result. Shadow and Heads couldn't stall Sonic and his irritating friends forever, so now here he was, legging it back to the control room to initiate the next stage. Hopefully the clone would find its own way to him or something.

The Doctor arrived at his destination, trying to get a few deep breaths into his system. Cosmo was exactly where he'd left her – bound and in the midst of the tangled mess of wires which he had attached to her.

The plant girl scowled at him with an obvious air of loathing. "I'm not scared of anything you might do to me." she said in an admittedly brave manner. "But you could at least tell me why you've captured me."

Eggman was still recovering from his marathon, but managed a smirk and raised his eyebrows. "Well, well! How long ago did you ditch being a coward? Who would have guessed, from the poor girl who lost her family…" he mocked.

She strained to escape from her prison. "Don't you _dare_! Tails made me strong! And he'll be coming for me!"

"I don't doubt that." The Doctor considered her request for knowledge. "I suppose it won't hurt any more than it's _going_ to hurt if I spill a bit of my plan. Fine, I'll tell you what your role is in all this; it's not like you'll be blabbing to anyone else!"

Cosmo continued to glare at him, which he found slightly unnerving. Not that he'd tell her that, of course. "What does this machine do?"

Eggman grinned. "Say 'please'."

He could actually hear her teeth grinding. "…Please." she muttered angrily.

A little fanfare of triumph played in his head. "See, manners don't hurt, do they? Unfortunately, this machine _will_. I call this little terror 'The Manipulator'."

"The…Manipulator?" she repeated like a child learning a new word. "I'm guessing the purpose is in the name."

"How'd you figure that out, genius?" he taunted. Eggman had to admit, this thing was a nasty piece of work, even by his standards. It practically stabbed the word 'morals' in the back and kicked it while it was down. Then it would quite possibly dance on the grave before going out for a relaxing pint. "See, at first I only thought of using you as a hostage, but I was disappointed in myself for being so unoriginal. So I thought some more and came up with a far more exciting plan! That's why you're in this machine right now. So, you freak." the Doctor said, looking to one-up her some more. "How scared are you again?"

"Not one bit." she answered calmly.

"Really? Well then, what if I told you that this is the same machine which I put Heads into?"

The fear flashed instantly in her eyes. "No! You can't make me like him!" She struggled harder against the binds.

Eggman cackled. "It's called The Manipulator for a reason, little girl! Firstly, I caused him immense pain with electric shocks through the wires. But that would be pointless by itself; after all, he'd just hate _me_!" He approached the transparent glass of the chamber. "Nonetheless, the true basis upon which this unpleasant thing works is fairly simple. Imagine, just for a moment, that every time a fox saw another fox, he was subjected to terrible agony. Tell me, Cosmo, what would happen the next time the fox saw another of his own kind?"

"N-no…" Cosmo whimpered as she realised what he was hinting. "Please, don't make me want to hurt others again! I made that mistake with the Metarex!"

Eggman pressed his face against the glass, getting right in Cosmo's face. He held up a CD. "This is the collection of footage and photos I looped to Heads. Happily, I don't even have to change it; you're going to be shown exactly the same thing!"

"NO!" she screamed, true terror flaring in her eyes. Eggman could see she knew precisely what was going to happen. "Just hurt me, I don't care if you _kill_ me – but please, don't make me hate Tails! I'll do anything, I'm begging you!"

"HOOHAHAHAHA! Your fear has returned remarkably quickly, I see!" The Doctor walked over to his computer and nodded to her. "Although I must tip my metaphorical hat off to you; at least you're smart enough to realise that no matter how much you tell yourself I'm the real culprit, your instincts will always remind you otherwise!"

Tears were slipping slowly down Cosmo's cheeks. "I'll do anything…" she repeated in a whisper. "Please…"

Eggman pretended to consider it. "Hmmm…how about no?" He inserted the CD and pressed a button, making a screen drop right in front of her and causing pegs to roughly force her round eyes open. Eggman was delighted to hear her sobbing uncontrollably. The CD began playing and he gave her a thumbs-up. "Enjoy the film!"

He pressed a different button and almost immediately the screams began. The din was so great Eggman had to cover his ears as he exited the room. "Sorry Cosmo, got to go check on my clone! I'll see your rather angrier self later!"

Even as he left, he could hear the first cries of agony at the false betrayal his machine was fabricating. "NO! PLEASE STOP HURTING ME, TAILS! WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS TO ME?! I LOVED YOU!"

Eggman broke into another run to get away from the noise.

* * *

Tails still couldn't get his muscles to move. Watching an evil-faced copy of himself approach had struck him to the core; not only was seeing his reflection without a mirror extremely surreal, but Cosmo's words were also coming back to him. "_I'm so sorry! The boy I met in that world…he's your -"_

Eggman had interrupted at that point, but now he didn't need her to complete the sentence. Tails finally regained his voice as Shadow and his double stopped in front of the group. "What – what is this madness?!"

His copy smirked. "Hello, Tails. My name is Heads, and now I'm going to kill you." He moved as though he was going to make a lunge and Sonic tensed to prepare to block him, but Shadow grabbed his tails and whispered something hastily in his ear. Heads cleared his throat. "Sorry, I'll try that again. My name is Heads, and I'm here to answer any questions you have."

Knuckles scoffed, but Tails decided he might as well ask. The kitsune knew the more time he spent here, the more opportunity he was giving Eggman to harm Cosmo, but the events of the last few days had left him incredibly confused. The mere existence of this identical fox was the final straw; Tails needed some of those answers. His first question was a single word. "How?"

Heads seemed to understand. "Yes, don't worry; I questioned the authenticity of my life at first, too. But then Doctor Eggman told me his theory."

Sonic cut in. "Tails, we don't have time for this! We can figure out who the heck this guy is later! Cosmo's in danger, remember?"

Tails held up a hand to stop his best friend's words. "Wait, I have to know! What was his theory?"

Shadow stepped forward. "I'll handle this. Remember when you shot Dark Oak and Cosmo, and then the Sonic could only retrieve the seed?"

Tails nodded, the tears shed so many times before forming once again. "How could I forget?" he whispered in shame.

Shadow ignored Tails' emotions and went on. "As you must have known to bring her back, Cosmo's soul was in that seed. Then, straight after she died, you went and cried on it. It was so soon after Cosmo's soul had entered, the seed was still in a soul-accepting mood, if you know what I mean. Your sorrow was so great that a piece of _your_ soul was inside those tears, so when you cried on it, a piece of yourself entered along with Cosmo."

Tails stared. "So Heads is…_me_? I created him?" Shadow nodded. "I – I can't believe this!"

Heads growled. "That's why I was so depressed when I was with Cosmo for those long months! I wanted to be happy, but the piece of your soul that is now me was – and still is - infected with so much sadness!"

Tails held up his hands. "I didn't know that would happen. How could you expect me to foresee that outcome?"

"I don't give a damn!" Heads had a crazed look in his eyes, looking like he might attack at any moment. "I _hate_ you, Miles Prower! I've never known anything but anger and sorrow, and you're the only one to blame!"

Tails felt some of his own hatred stir. "And _you_ kidnapped Cosmo!" he retorted. "You hurt her. I don't care if you're me; I won't ever forgive you!" Having a row with himself was inducing a bizarre mixture of emotions, but he couldn't get distracted. Not now.

Cream bravely spoke up. "Please Heads, listen! Doctor Eggman has forced you to hate Tails! I just know it was him!"

"Why does everyone keep telling me that?!" Heads grabbed his actual head in his hands and let out a primal roar. "IT'S NOT TRUE! SHUT UP, STUPID RABBIT!" He propelled himself forwards using his tails and punched her. Hard. She screamed in pain and fell to the grassy ground.

Normally everyone would naturally retaliate against Heads with fists flailing, but they were all busy staring at what had just fallen out of Cream's pocket.

A Chaos Emerald.

Shadow was the fastest to react and dived for it; even Sonic was too shocked to get there in time. Tails jump-started his brain back into gear, sprinting to Cream in order to help her. But his suddenly heightened awareness resulted in a previously mind-boggling issue also resolving itself in his head. He remembered what seemed like a lifetime ago, the night when he, Sonic, Amy and Cream had stolen the Mowarium from Eggman's base.

"_My Chaos Emerald?_" Tails had said. "_I don't have one!_"

Eggman, however, had been convinced. "_YES YOU DO! My radar does not lie, unlike you!_" Now the fat man's behaviour finally made sense; Cream had possessed it all along.

"Cream?" Tails said quietly to her crying figure, face down on the floor. "Come on, I'll help you get up." Wrapping an arm around her, he pulled her up. He gently massaged the spot where she'd been hit and continued to whisper calmly, even though his insides were at boiling point and ready to explode against the cruel fox who'd hurt his friend. "It'll be ok, Cream. Why did you have a Chaos Emerald?"

Despite everything, he saw a redness appear on her cheeks that hadn't been caused by the blow. "I – I wanted to give it to you, Tails…" she said shyly.

The fox didn't understand. "Huh? Why me?"

But by now everyone had regained their senses, and the threats towards Shadow began. Sonic spoke first. "You'd better return that, buddy, or there'll be trouble coming from me!"

"Yeah, stealing's for losers!" Amy yelled. Knuckles banged his fists together in agreement.

Tails decided to ask Cream about it later. He released her from the hug and held out his hand. "Give it back, Shadow."

The black hedgehog shook his head. "Hmph! You do realise I could just Chaos Control out of here, don't you? It's only because of Heads here that I – Heads? What are you doing?"

Tails looked over and saw his copy staring at the Emerald. The insane fox licked his lips, which seemed to unsettle even Shadow. "Power." Heads stated.

Shadow gestured with his hands to show confusion. "Yes, Captain Obvious, it's powerful. Now come on, we're returning it to the Doctor."

Heads walked towards the Emerald in Shadow's hand. "Power." he said again. "Power! I need that kind of power!" And before Shadow could react, Heads had swiped it from the hedgehog's grasp.

Even before the ominous yellow glow began radiating from his skin, Tails had a feeling Heads would utilise the Emerald with destructive intentions in mind. Tails had never so much as tried to tap into their power; that was always Sonic's job. Unfortunately, he now had no choice but to watch Heads demonstrate what Tails himself would be capable of with one in his hands.

Shadow made a few snatches for the Emerald but it seemed to have given Heads extra speed, because he was dodging him easily. "Stop playing games, Heads!" Shadow warned. "We're going back!"

But the empowered fox wasn't listening. His gaze was fixed on Tails. "_Now _I'll kill you!" The blinding speed which the Emerald had gifted him gave Tails no chance, so it was a good job Sonic was paying close attention. Just as Heads dived for Tails, the hedgehog darted towards Heads and collided with him in mid-air, sending them both flying backwards.

Sonic got straight back up and attempted to knock the Emerald away, but Heads recovered and avoided him. Tails made a quick realisation. "_He can't absorb their power to the extent which Sonic or Shadow can; he has to keep hold of the Emerald all the time!_" If they could pull the Emerald from his fingers, it would likely kill the supply of power.

Shadow scowled and pointed furiously at Tails. "This is the only time I'll ever help you, Tails! It's in my best interests to stop him, too. You'll have to watch your own back next time Sonic and I aren't there to protect your weak little frame!"

Even though Sonic was still battling Heads alone, Tails put a hand out to stop Shadow before he leapt into the fray. "I don't _want_ your help, Shadow! I'll never forgive you for trying to kill Cosmo!" Old anger fumed away inside him as he remembered his mostly futile attempts to prevent Shadow progressing through the Blue Typhoon. He still felt terribly humiliated from the way Shadow had beaten him up so easily when he'd wanted to protect Cosmo; it seemed that even the strength his love for her had offered hadn't been strong enough to overcome him.

"Pfft! Still going on about that?" Shadow replied over the loud grunts of Knuckles, who had now also joined the fight. "Let go of the past, fool. I only did what I thought was best at the time."

"Then apologise!" Tails wanted the ultimate life form to get down on his knees in front of Cosmo and beg her forgiveness for his attempts on her life, although that probably wasn't going to happen. However, if by some miracle the black hedgehog did mutter so little as a quick 'Sorry' to her, Tails knew Cosmo would accept. Her heart was golden. "Apologise, not for all of the bruises you gave me, but for the emotional harm you caused Cosmo! You didn't physically touch her, but do you have any idea the effect your cruel words had? She thought she was worthless!"

"That pathetic plant was already self-depreciating beyond belief!" Shadow retorted. "Whatever I said, I doubt it made much difference! She's not even here; how do you expect me to say sorry? Perhaps a postcard?"

"Don't you dare mock Cosmo!" Behind them, Amy was lobbing the occasional hammer, being careful not to bonk her own teammates, and even Cream was seeking vengeance on her assailant, dive-bombing Heads from the sky. The sight of Tails and Shadow just stood there arguing would have been funny if the situation wasn't placing lives at stake. "When I rescue her, I'm going to make you apologise if it's the last thing I do!"

Shadow smirked. "Don't speak too soon – that guy over there still wants you dead." With that he turned away and crouched, watching the battle.

Tails closed his eyes, trying to calm the tempest raging through his body. He realised he'd been far too angry, far too often recently. It was taking its toll. Besides, returning Cosmo was supposed to be the best thing that had ever happened to him, yet fate seemed to be deliberately pulling strings in his life to create the worst possible circumstances, causing a chain of events which only made him want to drive his head through a wall. "_I have to calm down! Getting Shadow to say sorry isn't essential; as long as the girl I love is with me, I'll be happy for the rest of my life. Cosmo will be safe…I'll save her and then we can be together…"_

He took a few deep breaths before opening his eyes. He frowned upon seeing Shadow still squatting in the same spot. "I thought you were going to help defeat Heads."

"Quiet! My timing must be perfect!" He observed the battle for about ten more seconds before making his move. With Sonic in the air, Knuckles had just dealt Heads an uppercut to the jaw, sending him skyward. Sonic curled up into a ball and was obviously preparing to spin dash him back into the ground, but the combo attack was never completed when Shadow leapt for Heads. His grip on the Emerald must have been relatively loose from Knuckles' strike, as Shadow managed to finally wrench the Emerald from his hand.

Heads' yellow aura instantly faded and, having been hit much too hard for anyone without an Emerald's power to handle, he dropped like a stone to the ground. The sound of the impact was sickening. "OWWWWWW!" Heads howled in agony.

But no-one was paying attention to him anymore. All eyes were on Shadow, who had the Emerald safely in his possession. "You idiot, Heads. There's no way the Doctor or I can trust you anymore." The black hedgehog turned to the rest of the group. "Don't bother going to Eggman's base. He'll have all seven Chaos Emeralds when I teleport; you won't stand a chance." He held the Emerald up high. "Chaos Control!" Shadow vanished.

Tails had lost count of the number of silences he and his friends had experienced today. The only difference was that this time, Heads was groaning in pain. Tails decided to take the initiative. "We have to ignore Shadow. Even if Eggman _does_ have all the Emeralds…" A determined grin fought its way onto his face. "But he also has Cosmo! There's no way we're going to sit back and let Eggman do as he pleases! Right, guys?"

"YEAH!" the rest of the group roared in unison.

Now a real grin appeared; this was why he loved his friends. "I know you're probably all tired, but we have to leave now! Shadow cost us enough time as it is! Let's go!"

Everyone looked prepared to speed off to Eggman's base, but at the last moment Amy spoke. "Wait guys! What do we do with…" A pitying look crossed her face as she looked at Heads' twitching figure on the ground. "…him?"

Tails sighed. "_She always has to ruin the mood…"_ But he knew she had a valid point. He was perfectly happy to dismiss his double's welfare; after all, hadn't he just tried to kill everyone? But Tails did recognise Heads was a part of him. He thought hard for a several moments. "There's nothing we can do for him." he concluded. "I know he's practically me, but I'm not prepared to be associated with him in any way. After we defeat Eggman…well, then we'll talk about second chances."

Knuckles nodded. "His wounds aren't life threatening. It's likely he'll just run away when he's recovered. Anyway, he's not our primary concern; we have to leave him."

A murmur of general agreement echoed around the group. Tails drew himself up to his full height. "It's settled. No more murderous aliens, no more lunatic copies of myself. Let's go do what we do best; let's stop Doctor Eggman!"

Sonic grabbed Amy and sped away, Knuckles picked up speed for a slow but steady approach and both Tails and Cream took off, planning to fly the distance.

They could never have imagined what awaited them.


	15. Chapter 15: Easiest Fight In History

Everything stopped at once. Both the images and the pain ended abruptly as the screen blipped off and the burning electricity being fed into her from the wires cut short. The binds imprisoning her hands were released and the pegs keeping her eyes open were removed.

Cosmo collapsed to the floor, shaking. She lay there for several seconds, but the still attached wires felt like bugs crawling all over her skin. With her hands now unrestricted, she ripped every last one from her body. Each pull was punished with a sharp rush of agony, but then rewarded with a gradually increasing sense of self. When the final one came out, Cosmo lay on the floor of The Manipulator's chamber, never wanting to get up again.

Her body was free, but her mind was on fire. All she could see were the same images of Tails; all she could remember was the pain. Her eyes were clamped shut, but no amount of time seemed capable of erasing it. Cosmo opened her eyes to try and make the sight of the real world push it aside, but the visions imprinted upon her mind's eye were so powerful they were overriding her actual eyesight. It was as though someone had permanently glued a picture onto her pupils.

Cosmo had no idea how long she lay there, waiting to regain her own mind. She vaguely became aware that she was mumbling to herself, but her mouth and brain felt like they belonged to two separate entities, so she didn't even know what she was saying. Her arms and legs might as well have been in different universes; they weren't doing what she wanted them to do.

After what was anywhere between two minutes and two centuries, a deluge of cold suddenly tore through her body. She heard herself scream very clearly and deeply inset instincts forced her limbs to connect with her brain. Cosmo leapt up and span wildly on the spot, her eyes finally clear in order to deduce the source.

The source turned out to be Eggman holding a bucket. "Are you deaf? I've been trying to talk to you ever since the machine stopped! Now come on, I've rescued you!"

"R-r-resc-cued m-m-me?" she stammered, her body shivering violently from the freezing water.

"Yes! That fox was torturing you; I couldn't believe it! I stopped him, but unfortunately he got away. Now I'm going to help you get your revenge!"

Everything he was saying made sense. The horrific pain had happened while a fox had stood there, laughing. But then she remembered exactly who that fox was. "N-no…Tails, he would never do that to me…"

She held her head in her hands while the fat man sighed. "I know, but we both just saw it. Who would have guessed he'd be capable of such atrocities?"

Her mind reeled. "_Something's wrong here…those memories of Tails weren't experienced through my own eyes. It's like they were images being shown to me; the same images, over and over again!_" She turned to Eggman, who was still lamenting about Tails' switch to evil ways. "I won't believe it!" she interrupted. "He's the best person I've ever met and – hang on, this is _your_ base!" She pointed an accusatory finger. "How could Tails do all this to me without you noticing?"

She saw Eggman bite his lip and frown. "Hmmm…perhaps I should have left you in there a bit longer."

Cosmo gritted her teeth. "I _knew_ it!" Her suspicions were put beyond all doubt as she remembered actually having a conversation with the Doctor about it beforehand. "You were wrong! I don't care what my instincts tell me – I'll never turn against Tails, ever!" The unpleasant visions of Tails laughing at her pain were still present, but she knew they were false. Her love for him would always win.

She wasn't sure if she was seeing things again when Eggman's frown turned into a grin. "I have to say, I'm surprised you managed to resist The Manipulator. I didn't expect quite the same hatred from you as Heads has now, but I also didn't think you'd remember I was the one who caused it. Your will is strong…is that something to do with being an alien?"

"No, it's to do with caring about others who care about you in return." she told him. Cosmo didn't even have to consider what to say. All she had to do was think of Tails and the positivity practically flowed out of her. "Love and friendship, Eggman. Things which you will never know if you don't change!"

Cosmo could instantly tell that she'd struck a nerve. Her heart lifted – it was exactly what he deserved. "You know, your voice isn't designed for shouting." Eggman spoke slowly. "It's far too quiet and it's pretty hilarious to watch you try and assert yourself. Unluckily for you, you'll soon be eating your own words!" The genius grabbed her roughly and dragged her over to a chair. "Shadow! Plan B!"

The black hedgehog appeared from nowhere holding a shining gem. She recognised it a moment later as a Chaos Emerald; she remembered Tails once handing the white one to her in the underground caves. It had felt so warm and soothing, almost as comforting as one of Tails' hugs. But then she remembered what he'd said about their potential in the wrong hands.

Shadow gave the Emerald to Eggman. "Listen to me, you puny weakling." the Doctor growled. "My cloning project has just gone down the toilet; I'm in no mood for ridiculous talk about your irritating friends who won't be able to save you."

"Serves you right!" Cosmo was in a rebellious mood. Hearing that something else had gone wrong with his plan only raised her hopes further.

"_I'll_ be the one laughing in a minute!" He held up the brilliant yellow gem. "This is the Emerald that Shadow has just retrieved for me, so now I have all seven!" Eggman waited to judge her reaction.

Cosmo didn't let her face give anything away, but she did feel slightly concerned. Although no-one had ever really explained to her how powerful they were in great detail, she knew that for every Emerald someone had, their power grew exponentially. A word she hadn't understood until Tails had enlightened her. "_Basically it means that every increment of increase or decrease is greater or less than the previous one."_ he had explained one ordinary day on the Blue Typhoon. "_For example, if someone had six Chaos Emeralds, the gain in power they would achieve upon obtaining the seventh would be far greater than the gain they got when they previously acquired the first Emerald._" Oh, he was so clever…

Eggman could see she wasn't going to respond, so he went on. "I could just supercharge a robot with them, but how boring is that? No, instead I'm going to use _you_ as a lovely hostess for my Emeralds!"

Cosmo gasped. This had caught her completely off guard. "What?! Aren't you scared I'll just use their power against you?"

"It doesn't work like that." Shadow answered for Eggman. "Regardless of the person actually siphoning their energy, it's the ultimate owner who decides the purposes for which they will be used."

"Couldn't have put it better myself, Shadow!" Eggman rubbed his hands together. "I'll be in total control of your mind! Although you might not feel it so strongly right now, the damage which The Manipulator did is still gnawing away in your tiny mind. You'll be fighting purely off instinct, and the memories of nasty Tails will make you all too happy to kill him!"

"NO!" Cosmo recoiled from the Emerald; an uncertainty about Tails' character was assaulting her brain just looking at it. "You can't make me use the energy! I don't want power – I'll resist it! No matter what, I'll never hurt Tails!"

Eggman tilted his head and a smirk crept across his face. "You genuinely believe that, don't you?"

"Yes." she answered firmly. Cosmo kept her thoughts positive, allowing all of the wonderful moments she had shared with the fox to float around in her mind. "_There's no way that evil man can turn me. I love Tails! I've got to keep both of us alive to know if he loves me back…_"

"Let me tell you now, you'll fall prey to my whim more easily than you fall over!" He pushed her harshly to emphasise his point, causing her to lose balance and topple over. "Hahaha! Mark my words, the Emeralds _will_ make you obey!"

Cosmo picked herself up from the floor, trying to retain some dignity. She considered making a run for it but then immediately disregarded the idea; Shadow would be on her before she took the first step. "We'll see." she replied simply.

"Yes, we will." Eggman sat down in his own chair and gestured openly. "However, I'm going to give you the option not to have to take the risk at all. Of course, you'll have to…_co-operate_ first."

Shadow checked the clock on the wall. "You'd better make this quick, Doctor. They'll be here any minute."

Eggman nodded seriously. "Good point. Shadow, go and deploy my robot. Have it and its pilot stood outside this base so it can welcome our guests!"

Shadow said nothing and left. Cosmo frowned. "Who is the pilot?" she asked.

"None of your business!" Eggman snapped. "Now, back to the little offer I had going. I'll keep you safe and sound, away from the Emeralds if you answer one little question for me."

"I don't trust you." she told him. This man had gone back on his word to Tails and his friends since long before she'd first met them – therefore she neither could put any faith in him whatsoever. "How do I know you won't use me afterwards anyway?"

"You don't!" Eggman replied gleefully. "But you're the one stood there with everything to lose. As a good saying on our planet goes, beggars can't be choosers!"

Cosmo scowled, hating every inch of this human who disregarded others so thoughtlessly. And that was a lot of inches. "_I might as well hear the question, though._" she thought. "_Then maybe I can stall him if I know the answer._"

Before she opened her mouth, Eggman remarked, "Look at you…such an indecisive child. You'd be terrible at everything, I think. What _can_ you do, really? Besides floating with that stupid dress? No wonder you need Tails to do absolutely -"

"Stop it!" she shouted. Cosmo didn't care one iota what the Doctor thought of her, but she had already heard so many others throughout her life say similar things, and the memories hurt. She pushed all of this away and focused on the matter at hand; the last thing she needed was to feel useless right now. "I'm listening. Ask me."

Eggman chuckled. "About time. This last Emerald here...well, there's something different about it. But then, you knew that already, didn't you?"

Cosmo narrowed her eyes. "I don't know what you're talking about." she answered truthfully. "Do you mean something about its power?"

Eggman groaned and leaned forward in his chair, causing it to groan as well. "I'll cut to the chase. My question is: can you tell me how _this_ happened?"

He twisted the Emerald towards her and held it between a thumb and finger, giving her an unobstructed view of its gleaming surface. Cosmo blinked to make sure she wasn't imagining it, but there was no denying it. There were words inscribed on the Emerald.

She gasped as she read the message. Initially she had thought it might be an ancient set of instructions or perhaps that the language used was Seedrian, meaning that Eggman would naturally have no clue what it said. But the message was in Mobian and probably not old at all – in fact the imprint was relatively scruffy and definitely not professionally done.

Burned into the Emerald's shining surface were the words 'For a Very Special Kitsune'.

Cosmo understood instantly why Eggman suspected she was the culprit. It would be anyone's first reaction. But she was shocked too, not so much because she hadn't actually written the message, but more because someone else seemed to be just as loyal to Tails as she was.

"Well?" Eggman demanded. "Answer me!"

Cosmo spoke but never took her eyes from the Emerald. "I…I don't know how that happened."

The Doctor banged his fist on the desk. "A typical answer that's obviously an outrageous fib! Shadow told me that this fell out of Cream's pocket, and according to him even Sonic nearly had a heart attack! Are you going to tell me _she's_ the one who wrote this?!"

"_Cream had it? Could…could she have fallen for Tails while I was gone? Oh no…_" But the situation right now was dire. She could think about it if she survived this horrible mess. Cosmo finally looked up to Eggman and hardened her gaze. "I don't even understand what you're asking. Are you only interested in who inscribed it?"

"You are impossible!" Eggman threw his hands up into the air. "I couldn't be surer that you're the culprit, but I don't give a giraffe's neck _why_ you did it – I need to know _how_! You can't just scrawl willy-nilly on a Chaos Emerald! Any Emerald would laugh in the face of the most powerful laser I've invented; it wouldn't make a scratch!"

Cosmo folded her arms and spoke in a tone of finality. "I don't have the answer to your question, Doctor Eggman. I'm not responsible for that message."

Even behind his ever-present glasses, she sensed his eyes darkening. "Well, aren't you just hypocritical? Can't even tell the truth. You're no better than me. The only difference is I'm open about it. At least I don't try to repress my evil ways – you're a backstabber, and they are the most disgusting things in the entire universe."

She cringed from the degrading comments as the bad memories threatened to surface once again. "P-please stop. I'm telling the truth!"

But the onslaught continued. "So what? Even if you _are _being truthful, what do you have to offer anyone? You're a coward, you mope around and even physically you're weak beyond measure. I mean, you're so thin! _And_ you're an alien! What does Tails see in you? I bet he's just stringing you along until he gets bored. There's no way any guy could ever be interested in a girl so ugly and emotionally broken!"

Before she knew it, tears were falling down her cheeks. Cosmo couldn't stop the images of her father forcing his way into her head and hurling abuse at her. "_Get that stupid girl out of here! She's worthless – why couldn't I have had a son? Someone who'll actually be able to assist me!_" Cosmo could still hear Eggman ranting about how Tails could never want her, and she knew some of the things he was saying were true. Unable to stand the thought that they could never be together because Tails found her repulsive, her muffled cries turned into hopeless sobs of despair.

She was doubting herself. That was her big mistake. Cosmo couldn't possibly have guessed that Eggman was deliberately insulting her for that very reason; he needed her as uncertain as possible if he was going to successfully use her as a host for the Emeralds. And it was working.

In such a state of depression and self-hatred, Cosmo barely noticed when Eggman began to drag her away.

* * *

Deczehn only had a faint idea as to the direction of his spaceship, and without Novemnine's guidance over the radio he surely would have got lost on this not entirely unpleasant planet. Even so, he felt relief wash through him when he finally spotted the Kosmerforsch and heaved himself towards it. He couldn't remember the last time he'd been this exhausted; Septsiet's body was heavy. And dead.

The main access staircase lowered for him as he approached. Certainly Novemnine's doing from the inside, since it usually required a password. The commander somehow mustered enough energy to climb the stairs and shuffled into the entrance hall. "_We can build massive ships, craft terrifying guns and create a sophisticated communications system, but no-one can be bothered to get off their backside and invent a decent energy drink…we need to sort out our priorities._" he thought as he stumbled the last few steps to the nearest chair.

Deczehn tried to lower his literal deadweight onto it with dignity, but by now his normally powerful arms felt like jelly, so Septsiet was more dumped upon it than anything else. "Sorry…" Deczehn pointlessly said. In reply, Septsiet's lifeless body slumped forward and fell off the chair. "Oh, for-!" The commander picked him up from the floor and set him down again with more stability this time.

At that moment the automatic doors leading further into the ship slid smoothly open. Novemnine came running out. "Commander! Are you ok?"

"Just about." he panted, still trying to catch his breath. Novemnine had, of course, heard everything Octotto had done. "I have to say, I don't feel like a commander anymore; other people have been killed because I couldn't stop an enemy, and I don't even have the orb anymore…" Deczehn felt around on his head for the familiar feel of it on his head, but there was only empty air there now. Its absence made him feel oddly bald.

"That wasn't your fault! I'm the one who came up with the galactic law disguise. It didn't fool any of them." His female companion faced Septsiet's body and hung her head. "I'm sorry…"

Despite the severity of the situation, Deczehn couldn't help smiling at her noble demeanour. It was why he liked her so much. "It wouldn't have made a difference if we were lining up to order a takeaway." he told her, waving a hand dismissively. "Octotto still would have betrayed us."

Novemnine sighed. "I suppose you're right. What we need to do now is keep Septsiet's body preserved until we can stop Octotto and get back home."

"Yeah, and when we get back – hang on." He turned to face her. "Did you say 'stop Octotto'?" Deczehn sincerely hoped she hadn't.

"Of course." she replied as though chasing down homicidal maniacs was a daily occurrence.

"Have you lost your mind?! Because _he_ has! And I'm not going anywhere near him ever again!" He couldn't believe she wanted to go after him, especially now that he possessed the crown. "Come to think of it," he said before Novemnine could answer, "I didn't stick around long enough to watch him put it on his head. Ughh…now we don't even know if it started glowing."

"That doesn't matter!" Novemnine's expression turned into one of hurt, and he could instantly tell she was disappointed in him. "I'm ashamed of you, Deczehn! How could we just leave him here to cause who knows what kind of havoc? It's our responsibility to bring him to justice, and if you can't realise that then you really don't deserve to be a Commander!" She folded her arms and turned away from him.

"_Ouch…_" He had never heard her raise her voice above a normal talking level, and nor had she ever challenged him before. But the worst part was that she thought he was being selfish; their relationship was going downhill, completely the opposite direction than he wanted.

Deczehn realised she was right. A fellow comrade had died here at the hands of another, and all he was doing was worrying about if Novemnine thought highly of him. Which at the moment she obviously didn't. "_Get it together! Stop madman, board ship and go home. Then I can think about my future._" He approached her and put a hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry." he said aloud. "You're absolutely right – we need to arrest that murderer."

She uncrossed her arms, turned to face him and smiled. "Thank you. I'm sorry for shouting, I had no right as subordinate…"

"Pah! All normal rules flew out the window as soon as Octotto shot our teammate, so it hardly matters. We're all equals now; I needed that little talking to anyway." Deczehn picked up Septsiet's body once again and began carrying it to the door Novemnine had entered through. "I'm going to put him in a cryogenic chamber until this thing is over. Get ready to leave – we're going back to that house to see if the residents know where Octotto went!"

* * *

Tails looked over his shoulder to ensure Cream was keeping up. Sure enough, there was she was, flying right behind him. She gave him a thumbs up, which he naturally returned. Then her chocolate brown eyes widened and she pointed at something straight ahead. Tails turned his head forward to see Eggman's base on the horizon, with what seemed to be a battle robot stood guard outside it. "_Phew...finally here. Now's my chance to prove myself to Cosmo!_" They had been travelling for around ten minutes, which was a fairly long time for his namesakes to be constantly propelling. He couldn't allow fatigue to defeat him, though; the real battle started now.

"Tails!" he heard Cream shout. "Are you tired?"

"A little." he admitted. "But I won't rest until Cosmo is safe again! I'm going to rescue her or die trying!" He slowed down slightly to draw level with her, letting him express himself without yelling off his voice box. "Cream, I don't expect you to fight because I know Cheese is ill, but do you promise to help me as best you can otherwise?"

She smiled. "Of course! Like I said before, I'm always more than happy to help you with anything, Tails!"

He ruffled the soft fur on her head and grinned. "Thanks!" Tails had considered asking about how she had come across the Chaos Emerald while they were flying, but going full pelt with the wind roaring in your ears wasn't an ideal setting for any structured conversation; they would have had to slow down too much. "_Well, perhaps Cream wouldn't have any problems understanding me with her incredible hearing, but I'd be hopelessly deaf…_"

By now Eggman's base was close and they were approaching fast. Tails was unsurprised to see a pair of quilled hedgehogs already down there; in fact he would have assumed something had happened to them if they weren't. What he wasn't expecting was a third person who definitely wasn't Knuckles. As they covered the final few metres, the clothes became unmistakeable – for some reason Rouge was talking to Sonic and Amy.

The two of them landed and jogged over to the trio. It seemed Knuckles hadn't arrived yet. "Hey, what's going on?" Tails asked Sonic.

"A catfight, by the looks of it." he replied. He pointed at Amy, who was screaming her head off at Rouge. "We got here a few minutes ago and Rouge was already waiting. Says she wants to help us defeat Eggman because she thinks he's gone too far, but Amy's not listening, as usual. She thinks Rouge is trying to trick us."

Tails listened to his explanation and frowned. "Hasn't she got a point, though? For once…"

Sonic laughed. "Maybe, but Amy's not even letting Rouge explain herself." They looked over at the pair, Amy now with a hammer held threateningly high and still yelling, Rouge just stood there impatiently, probably waiting to get a word in edgeways. "Here, if I get Ames to one side, you can talk to Rouge. You're a good judge of character anyway, so I'll go with what you say about Rouge's trustworthiness." He hurried over, grabbed Amy (who was pleasantly surprised enough to shut up) and pulled her away.

Tails beckoned Rouge to come over, and at that moment Knuckles came running in. "Last _again_? Ughh…I should start doing laps of Angel Island." He noticed Rouge and scowled. "What's _she_ doing here?"

"Nice to see you too." the bat replied shortly. "Listen, I don't know how much time we've got before Eggman starts trying to turn us all into dust particles, so you'll just have to trust me when I say I _am_ on your side. He stole something from me, and then the way he corrupted Heads was the last straw; I never want to work with that fatso again."

Tails processed this for a few moments, weighing up the risks of accepting or challenging her claim. "…Ok, we'll trust you." Knuckles gave him a look of disbelief and was certain to interrupt so Tails held up a hand. "We don't have time for arguing amongst ourselves, Knuckles! I think she's being honest; we need all the help we can get!"

"Fine!" the echidna snapped. "But if she double-crosses us, I'll be first in line at the revenge party."

Rouge nodded to Tails in thanks and was about to speak, but Tails piped up first with a worryingly valid query. "Rouge, why hasn't he attacked us yet?" He looked up at the looming monstrosity no more than fifty yards away, which was no doubt armed to the teeth. "That battle robot's just stood there…"

Rouge sighed. "I was about to ask _you _the exact same thing. I flew up to the cockpit to look through the glass and Eggman's definitely in there, but he was more spaced out than your girlfriend usually is."

Tails resisted the urge to correct her in that Cosmo wasn't his girlfriend, as much as he wanted it to be so. "What do you mean, 'spaced out'?"

"He didn't even notice I was there. I knocked on the glass to get his attention and annoy him, but he just carried on staring straight ahead." Rouge's body sagged and she appeared genuinely confused. "It's like he's forgotten he actually has an existence."

Tails doubted that, but her words had given him an idea. "Sonic, come back over here!" he called to his best friend. The blue blur flashed over, Amy trudging behind in a visibly foul mood. "Sonic, Knuckles, attack the robot together. That'll make him budge!"

Sonic and Knuckles nodded at each other. "This'll be the shortest battle our fair planet's ever known!" Sonic said cockily.

Knuckles put a hand out to acknowledge and agree with him. "Aim to hit it dead centre on the body!"

Tails had to smile. "_They may be rivals, but they know when to put their differences aside and combine their strength!_"

Sonic began spinning in his classic ball and Knuckles wound his right arm a few times to ensure maximum punching power. The two of them wordlessly shot upwards at the same time, both rapidly heading for the robot.

Tails was sure Eggman would finally shift his creation to avoid the attacks. But he didn't. The fox watched, speechless as his friends drove two holes straight through the robot. It couldn't handle so much damage at once and the goliath immediately began blowing up.

Sonic and Knuckles arrived back with the group and they all looked up expectantly, knowing Eggman would have evacuated in one of his capsules. But he hadn't. Everyone watched, even more speechless as fire consumed every part of the robot, which was now an unrecognisable mass of molten machinery. There was still no sign of the Doctor when the whole thing blasted apart in a spectacular final explosion.

Despite being peppered by debris, Amy found her voice, her infuriated attitude towards Rouge forgotten and replaced by a fear everyone else was experiencing. "Did…did we just…_murder_ him…?"

Even Knuckles looked shaken. "But…he didn't even try to escape! That's not _our _fault, is it?"

Sonic shook his head. "Something's wrong here. He has all the Chaos Emeralds; why didn't he bring them into play?"

"Well _that_ didn't go according to plan!" They all jumped as they heard a voice that belonged to none other than Eggman himself, originating from his immobile base. They all looked up to see him standing inside the transparent control room, megaphone in hand.

The Doctor chuckled when he saw six very angry and very confused faces glaring at him. "Oh dear - perhaps I have some explaining to do…"

**So far, this is the longest chapter by quite a way; I didn't expect it to turn out like that.  
Although I realise that not a huge amount actually happened here, the next few chapters should make up for it.**


	16. Chapter 16: Vengeance

Tails wished he knew just how much time Eggman had sucked from everyone's lives over the years. If someone could just build a time machine, travel back to the day of his birth and then tot up the total time wasted on every stupid message, every stressful mind game and every draining fight before multiplying that by the number of people his relentless mischief had affected...Tails had a feeling Eggman himself hadn't lived that long.

Yet the man seemed intent on whittling away even more time which could possibly have been used for relaxing with Cosmo. "_Well, it could be if he hadn't captured her…_" the fox thought bitterly. After Eggman's announcement that he was going to offer some kind of explanation for seemingly teleporting out of his exploding robot, he had dropped the megaphone and walked off.

Tails had reached the end of his usually unfaltering patience. He turned to Sonic. "I've had enough of him messing around with us. Let's force our way in and teach -"

"Hang on a moment, foxy." Rouge said loudly while pointing upwards.

The sigh that emanated from everyone's mouths as they looked skyward must have been loud enough for Bokkun to hear too, because when he dropped the third TV in as many days near them he complained "Don't shoot the messenger! I'm only doing my job!"

The robot pushed a button and once again Eggman's uniquely shaped head filled some of the screen while his moustache occupied the rest. "_More time to add to his life-wasting count._" Tails realised. "_Another message, another pointless evil genius act._"

"Hello, my furry foes!" Eggman opened. "Terribly sorry about the small interval; but then, all good theatre needs a break before the main attraction, doesn't it?"

"This isn't some sort of show, Eggman!" Tails snapped.

Eggman grinned. "Now now, we're all entitled to our opinions. And for me this is going to be truly spectacular to observe. Best of all, I don't even have to pay a penny to watch it!" The evil genius rubbed his hands together. "Then again, why should I? I'm the director!"

Tails groaned. "Stop talking so much but saying so little - get to the point!" He was tiring very quickly of Robotnik's constant analogies and his habit of structuring sentences in a far more superfluous manner than was necessary to get the point across. Eggman, like Tails, was a scientist. So why couldn't he shut up and say things straight? "How did you get from that robot into your base so fast? And what's going to be so good to watch?"

The Doctor chuckled. "You never were one for words, were you fox boy? Always tinkering away with your machines. Well, _I_ tinker with machines _and_ find time to perfect my debating skills – what's your excuse? I suppose it's just evidence that I am indeed so much smarter than you." Tails had never seen him so smug.

The kitsune had to fight the urge to steal one of Amy's hammers and bash the TV to bits out of pure frustration. He breathed a few times to calm himself, remembering his recent surges of anger and hatred and his efforts to reduce them, even when Eggman was being impossible. For Cosmo, he had to be better than that. "Just say what you want to say and then we'll have our inevitable battle." Tails said blandly. "We both know talking isn't going to resolve our differences."

Despite his request, Eggman remained silent. At first Tails thought he was doing it deliberately to drive him over the edge, but then the Doctor said something completely uncharacteristic. "Hmmm…you've done some growing up, haven't you? Fine, I'll let my ego take over to explain my brilliant plans in a minute, but firstly I have to admit; you're much braver than you used to be."

"Huh?" Tails momentarily forgot why he was even there, such was his surprise at being complimented by his rival. "What makes you say that?"

"Look at yourself!" Tails frowned and looked down at himself, causing Eggman to sigh in exasperation. "No you idiot, I don't mean stare at your hide's tangled mess! I meant look at where you're standing…then look at where your irritating friends are standing."

Tails rotated his head to face everybody. He had been expecting them all to be huddled fairly closely together near the screen, ready to offer him support in going against Eggman, but that wasn't the reality at all. Even Sonic, always much more willing to exchange friendly banter with the madman than Tails was, was standing several feet away looking almost disinterested. The group were listening to the conversation, certainly, but seemed to have no plans to join in.

He turned his head back to the screen and Eggman spoke again. "They didn't say a word the last time we met, and they haven't this time either. It's just been you and me."

Sonic's voice sounded behind him. "Hate to agree with a nutter, but he's right buddy. Recently I've not felt the need to add anything at all; you've handled everything really well! Credit to your new maturity, Tails!" The hedgehog gave him a thumbs-up and the others nodded in agreement.

"Exactly my point, blue vermin." Eggman said with a smirk. "You know Tails, perhaps one day I'll convince you to work alongside me. When you're a little older still, let's have a good chat about it! Just imagine - the masterminds of the world, united!"

Tails scoffed. "Never in a million years, egghead." Yet he couldn't help feeling oddly boosted by everyone's assurance that he could deal with things his best friend and idol usually handled. It was unfortunate it was Eggman who had started it though, because that just plain disturbed him. "Enough out of character behaviour, Eggman. How did you do that trick where you vanished from one place and then reappeared in another?"

"It wasn't a trick at all." Eggman responded. Then a huge smile spread across his face. "I'm sorry, I know we agreed no more pointless drivel, but this is just too sweet to resist. Rouge, get over here! I want a word!"

The bat rolled her eyes and stalked over to the screen, but somehow remained strangely elegant at the same time. "What is it, Mr. Facial Hair? Looking to compliment a pretty girl now?"

Eggman's face fell. "You've got to be joking. No, I want you to take a very short trip down memory lane."

Tails could feel the subject wandering again. "Hurry it up, Eggman!"

"Alright, alright! Rouge, do you remember your little muddle over how Tails was managing to be in two places at once?"

Rouge raised her eyebrows. "How could I forget?" she said with an air of nostalgia. "Troubled me more than some of the Metarex's locks, and they were pretty sophisticated."

Eggman cracked his knuckles and Tails could tell he was about to deliver the coup de grace. "Well, what if I let slip that the answer to my teleportation magic is exactly the same?"

Rouge frowned. "What do you -" Then she gasped. "No…you can't mean-! You mean that thing was…a clone?"

"What?!" cried the rest of the group. None of them believed it.

Eggman crossed his arms in a superior manner. "Dead right. It's nice to see all bats aren't total imbeciles."

"Your lies are growing thin, Eggman!" Tails shouted. He was especially dubious of the Doctor's claim; after all, his experience with bringing back Cosmo meant the fox knew exactly what was necessary for such a feat. "I know my regeneration machine could also be used for cloning, but even if you _did_ build one exactly like mine, you need Mowarium! Which we stole every last bit from you!"

But even before Eggman could respond, Rouge groaned in realisation and hung her head. "Oh no…I'm sorry Tails…"

The fox looked at her in surprise. Rouge was never apologetic - suddenly he feared the worst. "Sorry? Why?"

She glanced up at him but was unable to retain eye contact. "I may have…borrowed some of your Mowarium at some point to put it in my jewellery. Then it vanished."

Tails' intelligent brain didn't need long to put two and two together, and he could see the truth dawning on his other friends too. He knew getting riled up about things in the past was pointless, but he couldn't help becoming infuriated at his terrible luck. "When did you even steal it?!" he demanded of the bat.

"It was when you were finishing your machine, but believe it or not I didn't commit the actual crime. It was him." She jabbed a finger in a certain echidna's direction.

"Don't make me laugh!" Tails said without laughing at all. He was vaguely aware of Eggman hooting with his own laughter in the background, undoubtedly finding the sight of them fighting with each other hilarious, but he couldn't let this drop without discovering the truth. "You're a jewel thief, and Knuckles guards the Master Emerald so people _can't _steal it! His morals say that stealing is wrong in the first place! Isn't that right, Knuckles?"

He looked at Knuckles expectantly. Then, unbelievably, he hung his head too. "I'm sorry, Tails." he echoed.

"…_This isn't happening to me._" Tails thought. "_This has got to be a horrific dream, and I'm gonna wake up any minute…"_ But deep down he knew this was just wishful thinking. The hurt striking his heart at his friend's betrayal was all too real. "Knuckles, h-how could you…?" Tails stammered. He felt dangerously close to crying.

"HOOHAHAHAHA! This is fantastic!" came Eggman's voice. "You couldn't make this up – of all people, I've got little Knuckles to thank for the favour!" He actually had the gall to grab a nearby bag of popcorn and munched on a piece. He gestured at the screen with an open palm. "By all means, please continue! I won't be changing channel from your soap opera anytime soon!"

For the first time, Sonic rushed up to the TV looking very, very serious. "Hang on, egghead. You mean me and Knuckles _did_ kill someone?" The blue blur was speaking calmly, but Tails could tell he was extremely worried.

"Yes." Eggman said frankly. "The robot had my clone in it, and you blew it up. Simple."

Tails had never seen Sonic speechless before, but then again today had already provided quite a few exceptions to normal proceedings. Sonic closed his eyes; Tails didn't want to know how his insides were holding out. Knuckles just looked down at the ground. "…I have a lot to answer for." Tails heard him mutter.

"Just a minute, meanie!" Amy had finally joined the debate after the longest silence anyone had ever known from her. She hurried forwards and actually hugged Sonic instead of strangling him, which the blue hedgehog did not resist. "That still doesn't explain why your _clone_ didn't try to escape! And why are you so happy when your plan has obviously gone wrong?"

The Doctor spread his arms wide in mock celebration. "Hooray! Three cheers for pink hedgehogs; at least someone's still got their head screwed on enough to ask sensible questions!"

Tails barely cared anymore. He was so emotionally drained that he just wanted to get Cosmo and get out of here. Questions could be asked later. "Just tell us, Eggman." he stated. "Then you can reveal your stupid master plan or whatever."

"Fair enough. As enjoyable as I find a good conversation, this one has stretched a bit too long even for my liking." Robotnik pointed at Tails. "I was completely sure I had created the same machine as yours, fox boy. So sure that I didn't take a sample of Mowarium before I activated it."

Tails nearly managed to laugh. Keeping in reserve at least a small piece of a substance about which little was known was standard procedure, even among everyday scientists; he couldn't believe Eggman had made such a schoolboy error. "That was foolish." was all Tails found suitable to say.

"I know…hindsight is a wonderful thing, isn't it?" Eggman sighed. "I think you can guess what happened next."

Tails nodded, feeling slightly more uplifted. He had already figured out why the clone didn't attack or attempt an escape. "The Mowarium melted away." he answered for the Doctor. "And there wasn't enough of it to complete the process."

Eggman turned his nose up and nodded. "Exactly. I had indeed managed to build a machine just like yours, but what no-one told me is that Mowarium depletes over time when you use it." Eggman rubbed his bald head roughly in frustration. "And now, as you can probably imagine, I'm a bit miffed about not taking a sample; I can't even try and synthesise more!"

"But…I still don't understand why the clone was so unresponsive!" Cream understandably piped up. Tails didn't blame her for not realising – she was still very young, after all.

"Like Eggman said, he didn't keep feeding Mowarium into the machine, so the cloning process stopped halfway through." He frowned in concentration, trying to think of the best way of putting what he wanted to say in layman's terms. "So he ended up with a clone that was exactly like him in body, but not at all similar in mind."

Sonic looked up at him hopefully. "So we didn't do such a bad thing after all?" Tails could still see the guilt in his emerald eyes.

"No Sonic, you and Knuckles aren't to blame." Tails assured him softly. "Eggman's clone was effectively brain dead; in fact you probably did everyone a favour by getting rid of it early, even the clone itself." Tails looked angrily at Eggman. "Not being able to appreciate life is no existence!"

Eggman huffed. "Alright, so I put the clone in the robot to see if it would do anything, and it didn't. Big deal! Like you said, even _I'm_ glad to see it gone – it was useless! Not even aware of its own surroundings enough to know it was going to die!"

The knowledge that the Doctor was to some extent correct did not help Tails' ever-strengthening grudge against him. He couldn't be forgiven just because the arguably humane thing to do was end its life; Eggman hadn't even taken a single shred of responsibility, shoving it into the robot and hoping that one way or another the problem would solve itself. It was just salt in the wounds that Sonic and Knuckles had done exactly that for him.

But Tails knew it was one more thing which he was going to have to let slide. With all of his questions answered, all that remained was to do what they had come to do in the first place. "It's in the past, I suppose." Tails admitted. "But Cosmo isn't; she's still suffering at your hands! Redeem yourself from your mistake with the clone and return her!"

"Ah, I knew it wouldn't be long before that name started getting thrown about again." Eggman said slowly. He shook his head in disappointment. "Really Tails, do you think trying a moral guilt tactic will work? I'm not proud of my cloning project's results, but I'd never let mere regret get in the way of business."

Tails scowled. He was fully prepared to charge into the base himself if he found out where she was being held, regardless of how many robots he might be up against. Never had he felt so ready for anything; he assured himself no-one could stop him until Cosmo was being carried away, safely in his arms. "Where is she, Eggman?"

Robotnik leaned forward far in his chair until nothing else was in full focus except for his mouth, which moved only to speak a few sinister words. "In a very dark place."

Tails' heart fell into his stomach as he realised Eggman may not have meant that literally. Images of unspeakable possibilities flooded his mind, making him want to cry out her name to offer some measure of emotional support. "_But she wouldn't be able to hear me…I promise I won't be long, Cosmo!_" Tails wanted to either break down in tears or release his pent up feelings by screaming; so of course he chose the latter. "ENOUGH! Release Cosmo or we'll finish what we started and annihilate the rest of your base looking for her!"

"Release her?" Eggman shrugged. "Whatever you say, Tails." He picked up a walkie-talkie and spoke into it. "Shadow, come outside with Cosmo. I'll be down in a minute." The enormous man set the communicator down and nodded to the group. "Easy as that."

To Tails it was obvious that this was not as straightforward as it seemed. Eggman clearly had one more card to play, and Sonic confirmed he was considering the same when he dubiously voiced Tails' thoughts. "What are you up to now, egghead?"

"I'm not up to anything now except payback!" Eggman hissed, grinning maliciously. "It's what I was saying _before_ that you should have been more aware of!"

Tails felt his pulse quicken, sensing that once again they had missed something which the Doctor was about to reveal. "More aware of what?"

"Did you really believe my compliments toward you were sincere, Tails?" Eggman banged his fist on the desk several times, laughing. "Hahaha! When you stole my Mowarium, you bought time for Sonic by blabbing your extremely interesting plans, and I was foolish enough to fall for it. But revenge is sweet!"

The orange fox groaned as he understood what Eggman was insinuating. This time it was Knuckles who read Tails' mind and took the words right out of his mouth. "So you've been stalling us all this time?"

The expression on Eggman's face made Tails want to grab a massive cloth and wipe his mug clean from the planet. "Precisely, fools! And now she will definitely be ready!" Everyone watched the man on the TV suddenly drop his smirk and talk seriously into the camera. "Tails - I guarantee this will be the hardest battle you've ever been unfortunate enough to face. All I can say is…prepare yourself." Eggman pushed a button and the transmission ended.

Although he hated to admit it, even to himself, fear was creeping over Tails from the Doctor's words. Something about his mannerism had been spine-chilling, and everyone had learned by now that anything he said while keeping very calm and collected always ended much worse than something he cackled about. His trepidation must have shown, because Cream put a hand on his shoulder. "Don't listen to him, Tails!" the rabbit urged him. "We'll help you no matter what he tries!"

The fox took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "You're right, Cream. No matter what invention he chucks at us, we're ready!" He allowed himself to enter a confident state of mind, ridding himself of all the negativity. "_My friends are here! That's more than Eggman can say. Anyway, it can't be as bad as the last time he had all the Emeralds…_" Tails braced himself as the main entrance to Eggman's base rose in a cloud of smoke, as though Eggman had deliberately organised it for added effect. And he was right; it wasn't like the last time Eggman had wielded all the Emeralds.

It was much, much worse.

* * *

Cosmo's mind was not her own. Her body moved with incredible purpose, yet she wasn't in charge of her feet – some invisible force was setting them in motion for her, mapping out a path over which she had no control. Her previously blurred vision suddenly cleared into sharp focus and she quickly became very aware of her surroundings. Sunshine illuminated the outdoors where she had just been led, where a small gathering of people awaited. A black hedgehog was leading her outside towards the group, all of whom seemed oddly familiar. However, their identities were like names on the tip of the tongue; she had known them once, but somehow the memories had drifted from her grasp, her brain unable to recall the relationship she had previously shared with each of them. "_So many questions…why is my body so focused while my mind wanders into the void?_"

The raw power flowing through her veins was invigorating, though. Cosmo felt each beat of her heart empowered by a rush of energy as the seven Chaos Emeralds worked their beautiful evil upon her. Her consciousness of her actions was becoming hazier by the second, her only important goal slowly being unveiled like a curtain being pulled back in her head. "_I must make my master happy…need to dispose of somebody…_"

This aim was fully realised when she finally saw the object of her master's displeasure stood in front of her. The black hedgehog had led her to another of the animals, a fox who for some reason looked extremely worried. "_Like it matters…soon he'll be dead…_"

And as Cosmo's desire to kill the orange kitsune grew stronger, so did her body. She finally possessed the power which everyone else had used to abuse her since her unfortunate birth. That much she did remember. "_All I've ever known is the despair of pain and rejection…now it's my turn! I don't care who these animals are; they will be punished for their sins!_"

Her master had only requested the death of the fox, but her hunger for bloodshed stretched far beyond that now. Why waste all this power on one measly being? No-one could stop her now. She saw the fox's hurried approach towards her – Cosmo would have laughed if that emotion wasn't now obsolete. There was no reason for it anymore, just like how unnecessary the fox's concern would soon prove to be. "_How pathetic._ _Doesn't he realise that every step he takes is only leading him closer to his destruction?_"

Cosmo felt fantastic as the last shred of self-control melted away. Now there existed only the anger, the pure, absolute, undiluted anger which she would unleash upon them. Her rage fuelled the Emeralds' dark intentions further, choking her with more power than she could possibly imagine had ever existed. "_Oh God, this is wonderful…more! I need more!_"

The fox would die first. After that…she couldn't be certain. But she _was _certain that she wouldn't stop until her deep thirst was quenched. She closed her eyes, actually hearing her ancient Seedrian ancestors chanting in her head, begging for her to transform. "_Not yet. But soon, when my strength is beyond even my control…then I will be ready to become what I am meant to be!_"

She opened her flawless eyes. The fox was now holding her hand, tears streaming down his cheeks. His broken words passed right by her; they weren't worthy of her ears' attention. She concentrated, focusing a tremendous amount of energy into her right hand. _"Time to say your final prayers, hopeless kitsune! Now I take your life!_"

Cosmo heard herself scream aloud as she forced the raw energy into his heart.

"DIE, TAILS!"


	17. Chapter 17: Perfect Cosmo

Even before he felt the searing pain erupt in his chest, Tails knew he had made a disastrous misjudgement.

The sight of Cosmo walking out of the base had initially been a cause to relax. However, this wave of relief had rapidly ended when he saw the rippling aura surrounding her, cutting apart the air as she walked. He'd realised instantly the horrors to which Eggman had condemned her, and it scared him. Scratch that, he was truly petrified – not only for himself but for the girl he loved, because even from thirty feet away Tails had recognised that she was no longer the same kind-hearted plant he'd fallen for all those months ago.

But it was Cosmo's expression that had frightened him the most. If there was a face which displayed infinite impassiveness while somehow also showing endless fury, then at that moment Cosmo would have been its master. None of her features offered any hint of emotion whatsoever…except her eyes. Despite retaining their deep blue colour, the hidden world swimming inside them was burning.

Sonic, Knuckles, Amy and Cream had all backed away at an equal pace to Cosmo's approach, but Tails hadn't moved. Although his brain was screaming at him to escape, his heart had stubbornly refused; he would not run from the loving girl whom Tails still knew existed inside her. So he had made the decision to stand his ground and attempt to calm her destructive thoughts.

As Cosmo had walked ever closer towards Tails, he could feel the power radiating from her, becoming stronger with every purposeful step she took. When she had stopped right in front of him, the force alone had almost sent him toppling over onto his back. "_It's just the Chaos Emeralds!" _Tails had told himself. "_The true Cosmo is in there somewhere…_"

It was obvious that Cosmo hadn't recognised him, probably being a deliberate intention by Eggman. She had merely glared at him; the one thing that _was_ happening was her strength visibly increasing by the second. Tails knew it was only a matter of time before she had to expel some of it, likely upon him, so he'd attempted to calm her. "Cosmo?" he'd ventured.

She had simply stood there, ignoring him with that unreadable expression. "Cosmo, it's me!" No reaction. Her power was still rising, and suddenly the thought that she would remain this way forever had overcome him and he couldn't stop the first tears rolling down his cheeks. "Cosmo, please…it's me, Tails, please say you remember…" She'd closed her eyes as if in meditation, but did nothing more. "Please, I can't stand to see you like this! C-Cosmo…" By now his sobbing was uncontrollable – he needed to feel wanted by her, so he'd taken a chance and took her motionless left hand in his, hoping she would recognise the touch of his fur.

Finally, she had shown some kind of response. Cosmo's eyes shot open and she actually frowned upon seeing his distress. For a moment Tails had felt his spirits rise, but it was replaced by confusion when he'd heard a bizarre noise, its pitch steadily increasing. Then the fox saw her right hand, the one he wasn't holding.

Tails had realised what was going to happen an entire second before it did, but unfortunately staring death in the face had shut him down completely. He'd heard the worst words of his ending life when Cosmo screamed "DIE, TAILS!" and had thrust her palmed energy into him.

And now here he was, flying backwards during his final seconds. Tails was certain that he would be killed upon impact with the ground; not many beings could withstand a blast of energy powered by all seven Chaos Emeralds, and he definitely wasn't among them. Still, he felt oddly calm as he approached his death. "_Isn't it fitting? Karma has caught up with me at last. I was the one who pressed that button to kill Cosmo in the first place – she's just repaying the favour…_"

The crunch of smashing into the ground was sickening. After a few dizzying moments, Tails realised that this was a problem; he shouldn't have felt anything at all. "_Ughh…what's going on? How can I feel pain when I'm dead? Is this already some kind of…afterlife?_"

It took him several seconds to realise his eyes were instinctively clamped shut. Despite the pain rocketing through every part of him, he squinted slightly, expecting to see maybe heaven's pearly white clouds in reward for services in helping defeat Eggman time and again, or perhaps an endless sea of fire licking at him, his soul banished for his unforgiveable murder of an innocent girl who had already lost so much…

But neither of those things awaited him. The green fields of Mobius and its gentle sun were still present – everything was as it had been before, except now his main view was only of the fertile ground, thanks to his position flat on the floor. He lifted his head slightly; the pain was bad, but none of his bones had even broken. "_How did I survive that? And to do so with no major injuries…I'd call it a miracle, but even after Cosmo's return I don't believe in them. Something's wrong…_" If Cosmo had wanted him dead, he would be dead. She was physically weak under normal circumstances, but this definitely did not classify as normal; the Chaos Emeralds had the potential to award immense power even to a baby, if anyone had a mind sick enough to perform it.

At last his vision cleared. The kitsune noticed he hadn't actually been sent as far as he'd expected. He spotted Cosmo a short distance away, looking shocked as well. Tails prayed this signified that she'd come to her senses, but a moment later an expression of pure rage crossed her features and she stormed over to where he lay.

"_Ughh…where's Sonic and everyone else? Why haven't they come to help me?_" Tails quickly scanned the scenery while Cosmo drew closer, this time almost certain to finish him off for good. He groaned, half in pain and half in hopelessness, when he saw Sonic and everyone else fighting off a huge horde of smaller robots. There was no way such ordinary machines could stand up to his friends' collective strength and resolve, but he knew that wasn't Eggman's plan; the Doctor was simply distracting the others with sheer numbers to give Cosmo unhindered access to her target.

The pain was too great for him to stand up easily – Cosmo reached him before he was even on his knees. She towered over him and at that moment, Tails gave up hope for survival. He left his fate to whatever ethereal powers existed and for the first time in his life, he prayed. "_Please, give me one more chance; I've never even told Cosmo I love her! I'm begging for just one more minute where Cosmo can be herself, so I can admit my feelings – then you can do whatever you like to me…_"

But it seemed his pleas had fallen on deaf ears. No God could save him now as Cosmo dragged him to his feet and raised her hand to his face, undoubtedly about to deliver a crushing blow to his skull. "_I have my regrets…but Cosmo, please promise me you'll be happy when your nightmare is over…promise me you'll forgive yourself…and promise you won't forget me…_"He winced, closed his eyes and prepared for the end.

And felt a soft touch brush against his muzzle. Tails could hardly believe it; was she toying with her prey before making the kill? But when he opened his sky blue eyes again, Cosmo appeared to be waging a war inside her own head. Her face was a scramble of emotions and she seemed unable to decide what to do – her right hand was still aggressively gripping him upright, but her left continued to make soft strokes across his cheek. "C-Cosmo?!"

"W-why am I doing this?" she asked to no-one in particular. Her eyes were fixated upon her left hand, her expression becoming more confused with every gentle caress she made. "Why did I hold back when I struck you? I'm supposed to kill you…"

Tails was suddenly tempted to convert and start believing in those miracles, because his prayers were being answered before his eyes. Cosmo had, for whatever reason, laid off slightly on the amount of energy with which she'd attacked. Tails was convinced that this was the hopeful sign he'd been after – a tiny fragment of Cosmo's original self was fighting against all odds for control. Despite the toxic situation, he managed to savour her touches; they were having an incredible calming effect, and he immediately seized the opportunity he'd been gifted to take advantage of her uncertainty. "Cosmo! Listen to me, you're so hesitant because you know killing is wrong! Your nature is usually so kind and gentle; you've already taken the first step towards doing the right thing. Please snap out of it…"

Her grip loosened slightly. "Tails, I…I recognise you…" Tears of her own began flowing. "But I don't think I can halt the process – the Emeralds' commands, they're too strong! I can't stop my body!" As if in proof, he felt her small frame pulse with even more power.

Tails gently took hold of her chin and turned her head to look at him. Cosmo's eyes were no longer filled with rage; all they held now was an ocean of regret and sorrow. For some weird reason his brain chose this moment to realise that, like him, Cosmo had grown a lot taller during her six-month absence; he and she were now almost exactly the same height, meaning he was offered the stunning vista of the entrances to her soul. "_Her eyes…even when she's unhappy, they're so beautiful…_" If he wasn't still trying to convince her not to murder him, Tails would have loved to have got lost in them for the millionth time.

Cosmo's power peaked and she actually shook with the withheld force which she was pushing back down into her body. "Tails, I…need to transform! I'm so sorry!"

"_Transform?!_" Tails was absolutely shocked and suddenly very afraid; to his knowledge only the extinct male Seedrians had been able to change shape, and their new forms had been nothing more than grotesque monsters. He couldn't allow anything like that to happen. "Fight it, Cosmo!" His body had recovered enough to stand and move slowly by himself, so he gently removed her hand completely from his throat and wrapped his arms around her, his mouth settling near her ear. "You're doing so well…" he whispered. "Keep being brave…"

He could hear her sobbing into his neck – her distress was so great that the noises she was making made his heart want to tear itself apart. "I-I'm not brave!" she choked. "I'm a monster! H-how could I t-try and destroy you like that?!" But despite her evident clarity of mind, the Emeralds were refusing to give up. They seemed to be resorting to an improvised method, counting on Cosmo eventually having to just unleash the power, killing him regardless.

"Shhh…shhh…" Tails soothed her, his hand softly rubbing her back. He wrapped his namesakes around her, hoping to give her additional comfort – pacifying her was essential. "You _are _brave, Cosmo. Standing up to the Emeralds' intentions…I've never seen anyone do that before. Please don't blame yourself." Looking over Cosmo's shoulder, his hopes rose even further when he saw most of Eggman's army had been decimated. But why was the area around _their_ battlefield so hazy? And although his friends were sweeping up the last few stragglers, was it his imagination or were they tiring? He noticed Sonic was moving much more slowly than he was capable and Knuckles' swings were becoming uncharacteristically inaccurate. "_Now's not the time to think about them; they can handle themselves!_" He turned his attention back to the girl he loved.

Cosmo pulled out of the hug and smiled through her tear-stained pools of beauty. "Tails…thank you…I know who I am now. But, this energy – I have to release it! My body isn't letting me leak it slowly; it has to be in one go!" He could see she was dangerously close to simply allowing every tiny particle of stored energy to explode in all directions. "_The blast radius might even be devastating enough to fatally injure my friends…_"

Tails didn't know what to do. His victory over Doctor Eggman and the Emeralds with helping Cosmo regain her true mind had left him elated; he'd initially felt positive that if Cosmo was strong-willed enough to resist the mind games, then she could surely subdue the power bubbling inside her. But the Emeralds wanted revenge for their hostess's disobedience, and right now their retaliation plot was working.

Then, with a similar amount of metaphorical force as Cosmo's actual attack on him, an idea hit the fox. "Cosmo, direct the energy into a stream and fire it towards the sky!" If his suggestion worked, she could release the energy and everyone could still get out of this unharmed. "Come on, you can do it! Just gain a little more control!"

"I c-can't…I'm s-so s-sorry…" The ground shook as though a giant had decided to go for a jog on the plain they were occupying, and Cosmo's natural harmony between body and brain was clearly slipping away. "P-please forgive m-me…"

"_No! I can't die without telling her!_" Tails knew this was his last chance; he'd asked for a single minute where Cosmo recognised him and could think for herself, and here it was. In fact he'd probably wasted about fifty seconds of it already. "C-Cosmo…" he stammered. Why was he stuttering now? He was about to die, after all; why wasn't it coming out easily? "I don't c-care what happens to me, but I j-just want y-you to know that…um…"

Even though Cosmo was fighting a losing battle, she seemed to realise this was important, because her voice reduced to the wonderfully sweet and soft tone she normally carried. "What is it, Tails?"

"_Oh, that brings back memories…what that question used to do to me…_" Cosmo had spoken four words, organised into an everyday question with his name stuck on the end, but such a seemingly unremarkable sentence held a special place in Tails' heart.

"_It was always our greeting on the Blue Typhoon. First I'd take ages building up the courage to approach her, and when I finally managed that, I'd call her name…just about. I could barely even get my mouth to form the two syllables which sound like music together – her name is so beautiful, just like every other aspect of her body and mind. Then, she'd say those words and I'd instantly freeze up; it felt, and still does feel, like a privilege to hear my own name voiced by her. Cosmo…I love you…_"

There they were, the three words which Tails wanted Cosmo to hold a place in _her_ heart. All he had to do was transfer them from his brain, out of his mouth and into her ears. The vision of the past faded and he found himself staring once again into her eyes. "Cosmo…" Their faces were far too close. He could smell her honeyed aroma. And her lips, they were right there…

Tails didn't know why he did it. It was anything from extremely stupid, extremely brave or extremely selfish – perhaps it was all three. The words he'd wanted to say had blanked from his mind and yet again he'd been swamped with an overwhelming desire; only this time it was too strong to resist.

He didn't remember leaning forward, but he must have done because their lips connected. Hearing Cosmo's small gasp of surprise almost made him pull away and curse himself for being so rash, except the mere feel of his mouth touching hers was impossibly good. Tails had half expected Cosmo to be so shocked that she accidentally stopped resisting the Emeralds, and he'd be blown to pieces right there.

But that didn't happen. Unfortunately Tails hadn't thought beyond this point, and he suddenly realised he was supposed to actually move his mouth instead of standing there like an idiot. Again the urge to question what the hell he was doing rose, but he somehow ignored it; this was still likely to be his last act in life. So he cast aside the cowardly thoughts and began doing what he'd wanted to do ever since that fateful day when she had crashed into his life.

The moment Tails started kissing Cosmo, all consideration about stopping instantly flew out to the moon. He closed his eyes to allow the new sensations to flow through his body – perhaps it was better if he didn't see her reaction anyway. Incredibly, Cosmo did not push him away so he held her more firmly, his namesakes still wrapped around her. His dance across her lips was very slow and gentle; he wanted to treat her as delicately as the gorgeous yet fragile flower she was.

Tails supposed it was, in a way, both a good and bad thing that this would be the last thing he ever did. He could still feel the immense power emanating from Cosmo's form, confirming that there was no halting the process. "_Never mind; at least I'll die happy…_"

Then he felt Cosmo kiss him back. Tails' eyes nearly bolted open, but he knew this was surely his imagination – the fox kept them closed to prevent his dream from ending. As every nerve in his body continued to tingle with pleasure, Tails felt his back suddenly being clamped tightly. His mind had drifted so far from reality that he'd almost forgotten about his impending death; he had to know what was going on.

His lips still intertwined with hers, Tails slowly opened his eyes. What he saw almost made him faint.

Cosmo's arms were wrapped tightly around him, now gently stroking his fur between her soft fingers. Her eyes were closed and she had pulled herself right up against him. But those facts combined definitely couldn't hold a candle to the final surprise. "_Oh my God…she's kissing me!_"

Tails knew who, what, when, and where. He didn't know why or how. But for the first time he dumped unknowns and equations into the darkest depths of his brain, because right now nothing mattered except that he had kissed Cosmo, and she was reciprocating.

The physical sensation of their connection was wonderful – the emotional release of happiness and love was indescribable. Tails felt his heart burst with life as the realisation that Cosmo wanted him buzzed in his mind like a friendly bee. No doubt about it, this made up for every terrible event that had ever grinded him down, and each second of heaven made his soul sing louder; he could actually feel every regret and depressing experience seeping from his heart, completely purging him of darkness.

It was a clichéd turn of phrase, but Tails honestly had no idea how long had passed when they finally broke apart. He found himself breathing heavily from the experience, and he saw that the girl standing opposite was no different. With their arms still snaked around each other, Cosmo found the words first. "Tails…that was…"

"I know…" he finished. He really wanted to ask her if she truly liked him back, eager to confirm his new position of 'Happiest Fox on Mobius', but he remembered there was still a problem at hand. "Cosmo?"

"What is it, Tails?"

He couldn't help but smile. "What happened to the energy?" The blaze of pure power was still present around her, but she was no longer shaking – and neither was the earth. "Didn't you have to release it?"

Cosmo blushed heavily. "Tails, I…the moment your lips touched mine, all my control came flooding back." She beamed and hugged him tightly. "Thank you so much! You're my saviour…"

The fox blinked in astonishment. Kissing Cosmo had meant to be a final goodbye, not an actual solution to their nightmare. Still, it seemed he'd killed two birds with one stone (and Cosmo hadn't killed anyone at all). "You were the one who was brave enough to combat the evil." he replied. "Now please Cosmo, get rid of the Chaos Emeralds' power by firing it into the sky; even though beings who harness all seven are dubbed 'perfect', you don't need them to earn that title."

She blushed again and said, "Please Tails, you're too good to me." Then he spotted a small smile cross her recently kissed lips. "But I have a better idea." The plant gathered every last bit of energy, turned on the spot and blasted it in a gigantic stream, heading in the direction from which she had first came.

Eggman's base didn't stand a chance. As though Sonic hadn't damaged it enough already, the Chaos energy blew an unholy hole straight through its centre. It ripped apart so quickly Tails wondered if even the _real _Eggman had managed to escape in a capsule. The debris-scattered crater where the base had once stood was too distant to be able to tell, so Tails turned back to Cosmo.

But as he did, he saw a flash of blue in his peripheral vision. Even before he swung back round to observe it, he knew it was Sonic's body lying on the ground. It wasn't just Sonic, either – all of his friends were unconscious. Tails could tell their battle with the smaller robots had caused them to drift away from the base, because they were nowhere near the now extinct humanoid. "_The base's explosion didn't cause it, and they defeated the army of robots…so why have they all fainted?_"

He was about to grab Cosmo's hand and fly over to their aid, but he heard a terribly familiar noise fast approaching. "Eggman." he said through gritted teeth. He rotated his head towards the source and sure enough, there was a slightly charred bald man hovering over to them in a capsule. The Doctor hadn't come to a halt before Tails yelled, "What did you do to my friends?!"

Cosmo wrapped an arm around his waist. He knew this wasn't for personal comfort; she was doing it to show Eggman her unwavering loyalty towards her friends, as well as ensuring Tails felt supported. This made him feel slightly smug. "Answer him, Doctor Eggman! We've all had enough of your evil ways!"

"…"

Tails frowned. Eggman didn't appear annoyed, angry, or indeed anything at all. "Give me a moment, Cosmo." Tails propelled himself into the air and flew in front of him, rival facing rival. "I might not be the strongest fighter, but you're defenceless in that capsule. You'll deserve every bit of punishment I give you if you don't answer my question." He spoke calmly, but a threatening edge tipped his voice."

"…They did that to themselves." the Doctor finally responded. "My army was composed of Gasbots – minimal weaponry and armour, release a sleeping gas upon exploding. They were _meant_ to be destroyed."

Tails forced himself not to compliment his enemy's genius; deception was definitely Eggman's strong point. "So they'll be alright?" he pressed.

"Obviously." Eggman replied shortly. Then he pulled a few levers and his capsule began to move quickly, heading towards Cosmo.

"NO YOU DON'T!" Tails yelled, whipping through the air to reach her first. He stood in front of Cosmo with arms spread protectively. "You've made us endure enough today, Eggman! Now leave before I make you!"

Robotnik shot him a look and scowled. "I _will_ leave, fox boy. I just need to make sure you don't follow me. I'm afraid what I'm about to do is necessary; a man needs to think about his own survival…" Tails often received premonitions of when something particularly nasty was about to happen, and trouble was he was often right. This was proved once again when Eggman produced a rectangular grey piece of metal with a circular red button in the centre. He pushed and held it.

Cosmo began to scream. "AGGGH! NO! Please make it stop, Tails!" She was writhing in agony on the ground – the tears formed in Tails' eyes before he knew it.

"STOP IT!" he bellowed, his sight impaired through burning eyes. He tried to knock the device from Eggman's hand, but the Doctor pulled a lever and zipped away. This happened several more times, Cosmo still begging for an end to her pain. Tails gave up on the unwinnable game and rapidly landed next to Cosmo, going to hug her, but a jolt of sharp pain immediately shot through him. "Ow!"

Eggman chuckled and shook his head. "Remote Taser." he offered in explanation. "Did you think I'd be dumb enough not to take some precautions? This was designed in case she got out of even _my_ control with the Emeralds, but I'm glad there's still a use for it! While I had her, she was injected with many tiny pads that react to this button. I wouldn't touch her if I were you."

Tails found Cosmo's moans of pain heart-rending. "Why are you doing this? You've lost, Eggman! Time to face facts!"

"I've lost the battle, but the war has yet to be decided." While still holding down the offending button, he pulled a large black cage from the floor of his capsule with his free hand. Before Tails could react the evil genius had slammed it over Cosmo's shaking body, and he quickly pressed another button which locked the cage into the soft ground.

Tails, of course, felt the urge to rattle the bars and make sure he couldn't save Cosmo with brute force. He tried with all his remaining strength, but he just couldn't get the damn thing to budge. "Pathetic." Eggman scoffed. "Although I do realise that's probably enough; your girlfriend's safely trapped inside anyway!" He released the red button, and the relief on Cosmo's face was instant but short-lived.

"This won't help you, Eggman!" Tails shouted. "I'll come after you and won't rest until I get the button to release her!"

Eggman smirked. "There _is _no release button. Weren't you listening before? I'm doing this to make sure you _don't_ follow me." The Doctor pulled out yet another button and pressed it. Instead of shouts of pain, this time only the digital display on top of the cage lit up.

It read, **'5:00'**.

"I've attached a little puzzle to the outside of the cage!" Eggman, previously quiet and sour at his defeat, was starting to enjoy himself again. "Solve it before 300 seconds passes, and you get to keep your little organic friend! If not…" He grinned, knowing he didn't need to finish.

Cosmo looked like she might cry. Tails felt his heart sink as he realised he had failed to protect the girl he loved yet again. "Cosmo, I promise we'll get out of this…"

She sniffed. "I trust you, Tails."

"Oh, how touching!" Eggman cackled. "Well, no point hanging around! Good luck, my furry rival!" He activated his capsule and began to fly away as fast as possible. Tails saw him push one more button as he left; the fox didn't need to draw upon his incredibly high IQ to know what this one did.

Tails looked up expectantly at the timer.

'**4:59'**

'**4:58'**

'**4:57'**


	18. Chapter 18: Together As One

One more challenge. Eggman was gone, forced to retreat after arguably his worst defeat to date. Even with all seven Chaos Emeralds at his disposal, the man had failed to command a young, shy girl to obliterate a near-defenceless fox. Tails was incredibly proud of Cosmo, and his undeniable feelings towards her had only strengthened when she had not only fought evil literally head on, but also returned his intimate affections.

But then, true to form, Eggman had thrown a final curveball their way before fleeing. Cosmo had just played her part in saving his life and preventing disaster; now it was his turn to do what was necessary to rescue her. One more challenge, then all of this would hopefully be over.

Tails quickly circled the cage, looking for the 'puzzle' which the Doctor had mentioned. Although he had just five minutes to find it, understand the task and discover the answer, the fox felt quietly confident. After all, thinking was his forte – at least he didn't have to get into any more fights. Physically he was exhausted, but with regard to his mental awareness he had never been more alert. "I'll get you out of there in no time, Cosmo." Tails said with only slightly more conviction than he felt.

Cosmo's nod was shaky but honest. "I know you will, Tails."

Even so, Tails had no idea how this puzzle would manifest itself; not actually knowing what he was searching for worried him. For a horrifying moment he considered that Eggman might have simply lied in order to buy time for his getaway, but then he spotted something.

The cage was not entirely uniform. Tails could see one of the bars on the other side to where he stood was slightly thicker than the others, so he used the nearby bars to support his weight and quickly swung round to it. As he'd hoped, this peculiar area provided the problem he was going to have to solve. Tails had also hoped that the task would be mathematical in nature – maybe a complex equation to solve or perhaps a real life dilemma involving physics. Unfortunately, this particular wish definitely hadn't come true.

What was in front of him made no sense whatsoever. There was a small monitor attached to the thicker bar which displayed the message:

**INSTRUCTIONS FOR OPENING:**

**HDLDCROSTIAIYGHEOAOOHDTIAIPY YUAYHVNSEGOS!OIECNNOUCFUNNEOTOROORKY?WHDPSOEIOTAIBRMLAHUHYSYEO!LAAET!EC!**

Tails felt his heart sink like a waterlogged ship. "_…What on Mobius is this?!_" The title made obvious sense, but the garbled text underneath was one of the most bizarre things he had ever seen. He shuddered as his mind reminded him that he was against the clock. Although he wasn't even sure he wanted to know how much time had already passed, the fox chanced a quick look at the timer.

'**4:08'**

Almost a minute had slipped away and he still didn't have a clue what he was supposed to be doing. Tails felt his breathing quicken and panic rapidly set in. "Tails? Do you know what to do?" the voice of the angel inside the cage asked him.

He lied to it. "Of course Cosmo, I'm just working it out now." From the inside, she had no way of seeing the display or the 'question', if it could be called that. Tails hated himself for deceiving her; that was usually Eggman's job. "_But what else can I do? Tell her I can't even understand what it's saying and that she's facing certain death?_" The kitsune took a steady breath – it was a puzzle. It wasn't designed to be easy, especially when Eggman was the mastermind behind it.

He turned back to the screen. The jumbled nonsense instantly caused ominous doubts to rise in every fibre of his being, threatening to overwhelm him, but Tails forced himself to think logically. If he eliminated what _couldn't _be possible, it would leave him more likely to find the real solution.

Tails immediately disregarded the thought that the message might be written in another language. Assuming you weren't a complete idiot, a puzzle was something that could be worked through and solved by almost anyone; when it came to languages, you either knew it or you didn't. That wasn't Eggman's style. Even though he wasn't here to actually observe proceedings, Tails had a feeling the Doctor would be having a good time imagining whether the fox had figured it out or not.

"_What about substitution ciphers?_" For a moment Tails thought he'd hit the jackpot and went to mentally replace each letter of the message with the next one in the alphabet, but his bubble burst upon seeing the punctuation. There wasn't much – only a few exclamation marks and a single question mark, but that was more than enough. Punctuation could not be substituted in a consistent pattern because, unlike the alphabet, each character wasn't cemented in a specific order. "_I suppose_ _they might be irrelevant and I'm just meant to do the letters, but that's not Eggman's way either…he likes things to be perfect, with no anomalies left over._" He made the decision not to attempt it; it could be a last resort if the clock's first digit was zero.

Tails tried to move on to his next theory, but then he froze – his mind was drawing a blank. Those two ideas were the only ones he had. "_No no no! Come on you stupid fox, you're supposed to be intelligent!_" But his brain didn't want to co-operate.

Although he was trying to keep his face as neutral as possible, a fraction of his cluelessness must have appeared because Cosmo asked him the same question again. "Tails, are you sure you know what you're doing?"

"Yes, I just need a bit more time." he managed to respond calmly. But his insides were churning chaotically; the more he thought about it, the more everything became unclear and made him want to throw up. This vicious cycle was refusing to break and he heard himself start to hyperventilate.

Cosmo rushed to the edge of the cage and gripped his hand through the bars. "Please tell me the truth, Tails! I can see how uncertain you are! I know you're avoiding telling me because you're trying to protect my feelings, but I can tell that it's distracting you!" She stretched through the bars with her other hand and lifted his head to meet her gaze. "Now please, be honest with me…"

He couldn't look inside her deep blue eyes and lie. His voice barely rose above a whisper as he admitted, "Cosmo, I…I'm stuck…please forgive me!" Tails felt disgusted with himself.

But strangely, he saw her smile. "Thank you. And there's nothing to forgive, Tails. Now we can both focus on what's troubling us. Don't be ashamed that you can't solve it; let me help you! What does it say?"

Tails marvelled at her bravery. Cosmo was the one trapped and facing imminent death, yet she had a far more level head than he did. But the kitsune couldn't manage a smile – there was too much at stake. "It's difficult to explain…it says 'Instructions for opening', and then it's just a bunch of nonsensical letters stuck together. There isn't even a keypad so I can input an answer; it seems we have to do something which the cage can somehow understand we're doing." Tails ran a hand through his stubborn quills in frustration. "I don't know, Cosmo! I'm sorry!" He looked upwards with dread to the timer.

'**3:31'**

Cosmo squeezed his hand reassuringly. "We're going to think about this together, Tails. If you're truly out of ideas, then I've got a small one." Tails' ears perked up. "Why don't you count how many letters there are? Maybe that's important."

He wanted to tell her she was grabbing at straws, but that would have been extremely rude after she had just proved she was much calmer and had also offered to help. "_Besides, it's not like I have any better ideas…_" Tails skimmed through the message, counting the number of characters even faster than he thought he could. But he was sure he hadn't missed any, and his heart skipped a beat as he finished. "One hundred exactly – that can't be coincidence!"

Cosmo beamed. "That was really quick! We've got a lead, so now we need to follow up on it." Then she gestured at him. "I think it's your turn to shine, Tails; you're much better with numbers than I am! So what's special about one hundred?"

Tails almost shook his head at his how his crush was coping under such huge pressure. She was putting him to shame. "Well, uh…it's the first three digit number. People like to use it because it's very rounded and whole, even though all integers are whole. It's based around the prefix 'centi', and…um…" None of this was helping at all. How was this list of facts going to assist in unlocking a cage which could apparently be opened without a key or any electronic input? He looked longingly at his friends' still unconscious bodies – if only they'd wake up! "_They might be able to offer something! Anything is better than being clueless!_"

"Isn't it a square number, too?" Cosmo added. "I think that's right."

"Yeah, it is." Tails responded automatically, almost too lost in his own panicked thoughts to hear her. "_Hang on a minute…_" He straightened up slightly when her words actually sunk in. "Square?"

Cosmo frowned. "Am I wrong? Oh, I'm nothing but a burden to you! I'll keep quiet now..."

But this time Tails really wasn't listening at all. "Square – of course! Cosmo, you're a genius!" The fox quickly turned back to the screen, leaving Cosmo extremely confused. Tails could see she was about to ask about his mysterious revelation, so he answered first to save valuable time. "I think this puzzle revolves around a type of manual encryption method where the number of letters has to be a square number!" If this didn't work he'd cut off both of his namesakes and eat them on live television.

The girl in the cage stood up and curtseyed. "Glad I can help save myself! And I'm no genius, Tails; that's how I describe you, not the other way around!" But Tails was still staring at the message and she could see the concentration on his face. "Oh no, I'm sorry! You need to focus, don't you? I'll stop talking now…"

Tails looked up and smiled at her. "It's alright, Cosmo. You've done the hard work so far, after all! But yeah, I could do with a few moments of peace while I try and do this in my head, ok?" Her emphatic nod assured him no interruptions. He allowed himself one more glance at the remaining time; checking later only to see that there was less than two minutes left would probably turn him into a frenzied mess that couldn't think straight.

'**2:41'**

"_It won't take that long. I'm sure of it…_"

A piece of paper and a pen would have been helpful, but Tails knew he was more than capable of doing this mentally. All he had to do was imagine the first ten letters in a line, then set out the next ten directly underneath those, then the following ten underneath again; eventually he'd end up with ten rows of ten letters, organised to form a perfect square. Then he just had to read it in a certain way…

Correctly positioning all 100 characters while also getting a clear picture of the result using only the brain would have been enormously difficult for any normal Mobian of average intelligence – luckily Tails was far beyond them. Once again the task required less time than Tails himself thought it would, because a last skim through the message practically made the letters shuffle themselves into visible lines in his mind's eye.

Through this method which Tails felt positive would clear things up, the once baffling nonsense of:

**HDLDCROSTIAIYGHEOAOOHDTIAIPY YUAYHVNSEGOS!OIECNNOUCFUNNEOTOROORKY?WHDPSOEIOTAIBRMLAHUHYSYEO!LAAET!EC!**

Had transformed into:

**HDLDCROSTI  
AIYGHEOAOO  
HDTIAIPYYU  
AYHVNSEGOS  
!OIECNNOUC  
FUNNEOTORO  
ORKY?WHDPS  
OEIOTAIBRM  
LAHUHYSYEO  
!LAAET!EC!**

No more enlightening to the untrained eye. "_But reading each column top to bottom, instead of each row left to right…_"

Then, Tails felt his soul wither. Even though the layout existed just in his head, the first column alone made Eggman's previously incomprehensible message all too clear. Mentally reading the other ninety characters made him want to turn himself inside out and die. "_No! This can't be happening! How can I tell Cosmo that…that she's going to…?!"_

He felt the first of a never-ending stream of tears drip onto the soft ground. "C-Cosmo…" he stammered. "I – I'm so sorry! There's – there's just –" He couldn't voice the terrible sentence.

Cosmo gripped his hand more tightly as, for the first time while inside her prison, genuine fear clouded her eyes. "W-what is it Tails? Please tell me, and be honest!" He saw her tremble. "Am…am I going to die?"

'**1:56'**

Tails broke down. Half of him wanted to keep his promise to tell her nothing but the truth, but then again he'd already smashed one of his promises to her into thousands of painful pieces. "_I vowed to protect her, said that I'd free her from the cage…but I can't even do that!_"

The other half wanted to chase Eggman down and rip him limb from limb. Yet again, he had manipulated them like puppets; they had been doomed before they'd begun. To have come so far and survived through so much, only to be backed so easily into an inescapable corner – it was sickening.

Tails cried and cried and cried. He was aware of Cosmo desperately calling his name and shaking him through the bars, naturally trying to bring him to his senses, but what was the point of sanity now? Without looking at her, he somehow managed to sob out a few words. "Cosmo…I'm s-so sorry…the – the cage…it c-can't b-be opened! Eggman…t-tricked us…"

The girl inside the cage pulled him up from the floor onto his knees, snaked an arm around his back and gently pulled him towards the bars separating them. Their faces were now inches apart, and he could see the wetness glistening in her eyes. But her voice remained strong. "Don't worry, Tails; I know what dying in an explosion feels like, remember? Maybe this is fate's way of telling us that I should have stayed dead the first time…"

But Tails refused to accept such a cruel explanation. "No! You deserve to be able to live your life just as much as everyone else! Why is it always you?!"

Cosmo bit her lip. "…I don't know." Then she smiled sadly. "But you know something? You're my hero, Tails. Sacrificing six months of your life just to bring back a naïve alien like me, who did nothing but hold you back – it's a caring, heart-warming act of kindness in a world filled with hate."

Tails' eyes widened. Something about her words and mannerism was screaming that this speech was a final goodbye. "Please Cosmo, don't…I won't let you!"

She stretched her other arm through an adjacent bar and held him more firmly. Her voice began to shake. "P-please Tails, I need to say this! The day I met you, I thought you were a bad person just because of the prejudices my people had unjustly built against animals. But every day we spent together, you proved me wrong."

He wanted to put a hand over her mouth to end the agony. Each word praised his name, yet they made him want to howl; he couldn't face that Cosmo was saying farewell to him forever. "N-no…Cosmo!" he sobbed. "Please stop, you're killing me! Don't leave me alone again!"

"Shhh…you're not alone, my wonderful fox." she said softly. "You have your friends. Say goodbye to them for me, won't you?" Tails tried to interrupt, but his voice box had simply died. He couldn't muster a sound to get out of his mouth.

Cosmo held his hands in hers. "How long, Tails?" she asked quietly. Shuddering, he raised his head what felt like three miles upwards. The kitsune held up a single finger.

She nodded in understanding. "Tails…I have to say something before I go." He looked deep into her gorgeous blue eyes, hanging off every sweet sound that escaped her lips. "I know you only kissed me before as a last resort to let me regain control, but for me…it was the most beautiful thing that has ever happened to me."

Tails wanted to correct her. He wanted to pour out his soul to her, tell her how he felt, how it had in reality been a mind-numbing kiss goodbye. But he was too shocked after what she had just said. "_No. She couldn't have just said it was the best thing that ever happened to her. I'm hearing things…wishful thinking…_"

But the girl he loved continued. "I could write a fifty page essay and a thousand poems about what I dream of when I look at you, but all of that wouldn't be nearly enough to express how perfect you are in my eyes. So, now that I don't have a lifetime to spend with you, I hope that these three words will do my feelings justice."

She tilted his head towards her, leaned forward and whispered in his ear.

'**0:40'**

She pulled away and kissed his gloved hand. "Now go, Tails! Before it explodes! Go and live your life, and don't you dare blame yourself for my death again!" Tears flowed freely down her soft cheeks.

But Tails had no intention of going anywhere. Mere seconds ago a tremendously selfish part of him had wanted to do exactly what Cosmo had just said. His brain was commanding his legs to flee as fast as possible. But now, after what Cosmo had whispered to him, there was no way anything could sway him. He was going to die with her.

She had said it first. Her bravery knew no bounds, and suddenly it became very easy for him. "Cosmo, I…I love you too!"

'**0:30'**

She gasped in disbelief. Cosmo looked like she might question him, but then seemed to realise there simply wasn't time. Tears of joy flashed in her eyes and she wrapped her arms lovingly around him. "Oh…oh Tails! I've dreamed of hearing that for so long! You have no idea how happy I am…"

Tails kissed her head. "I do. The moment you told me you loved me, I knew true happiness." He wasn't scared anymore, because the girl he loved was also in love with him. Death was a relatively minor issue.

'**0:20'**

Cosmo pulled him right up against the bars and kissed him deeply. Both fox and plant wanted to stay with lips locked for the rest of time, but that luxury wasn't available. She forced herself away from his tempting mouth. "Please Tails, you have to run! I promise I'll watch over you, and remember; I'll always love you! Now hurry!"

Tails merely shook his head. "I'm not going anywhere. I couldn't live without you, Cosmo. You're my whole life, and I want our spirits to be as one forever."

"B-but Tails…" Cosmo's eyes were sparkling with sadness.

"You can't make me change my mind." Tails said with an air of finality. "I want to spend my final seconds in happiness with you, Cosmo." He gazed into her wondrous eyes. "What about you, my beautiful flower?"

'**0:10'**

Tails knew she had accepted what must be. His green-haired angel smiled. "Even if there is no afterlife, my spirit will be in heaven if you're there, Tails." She held him one last time. "Come here, my love…" Cosmo pressed her lips against his and kissed him passionately.

The indescribable high of mutual love hit them both instantly. There they stayed, trying to give a lifetime of their hearts' affections to each other in just a few brief moments.

Their bliss would surely block out the fleeting pain of instant death.

'**0:02'**

'**0:01'**

'**0:00'**

**Firstly, I'd like to say that I did _not_ design that method of encryption used in Eggman's puzzle. It's called a 'Caesar Box', invented by Julius Caesar to transport secret messages in such a way that if anyone intercepted them, they wouldn't have a clue what the huge line of seemingly random letters said. I drew inspiration to actually use it from Dan Brown's book 'Digital Fortress', which is an excellent piece of writing I would recommend to anyone aged 15 and over.**

**I also appreciate that the 'square' of text in this chapter is somewhat difficult to follow in columns due to some letters taking up more space than others; however, with enough patience you should be able to read the entire message. Simply look at the square and, starting with the leftmost column, read top to bottom. Then move on to the second column and read that in the same way, and so on. Some words can (and in this case do) carry over onto the next column, making it even more difficult to read, but this site simply refused to allow any spaces at all between the columns. Sorry.**


	19. Chapter 19: Disguised Mercy

A lone vehicle flew over the last few trees of an infamous Mobian forest. The view on the way had been appealing to the eye in every way: a cloudless sky allowing the sun to smile upon all forms of life, the towering trees accepting the light with their deep green leaves swaying gently in the wind, glimpses of the wild animals below roaming free…under any other circumstances, even _he_ might slow down to enjoy it.

But today the breath-taking sights were unfortunately lost on Dr. Eggman. His capsule was chugging along at full speed and the only time the Doctor had looked down was to check his shoelaces were still done up. He had to get back to his HQ at fast as humanly possible.

It occurred to him that he wasn't entirely sure why he wanted to return so quickly. A beautiful afternoon had arose during which children and their parents would undoubtedly be outside enjoying themselves, sharing each other's joy; and here he was, running away again, with his cold heart still pumping unnaturally quickly for a reason he didn't even know.

"_What is it with this uncertainty? Granted, my master plan has just fallen into a bottomless pit, but I'm used to that by now. So why am I so troubled?_" The last time his usually brilliant mind had felt this clouded…well, the residents of this planet had still known him as 'Robotnik'. And that phase of his life had ended quite a long time ago.

Eggman was suddenly blinded by a powerful light. He squinted and looked down – his journey had brought him over the expanse of one of Mobius' greatest lakes, the flawless water sparkling. He realised the light was simply reflecting from the lake's surface, and even his protected eyes couldn't stand the searing brightness. "Ack! Bocoe, get me an extra pair of dark lenses!" He held out a palm expectantly.

Nothing was handed to him. He rotated his head to scold the short cyborg and, despite the shimmering stars on his pupils, snapped "Oi! What did I just – oh…of course." The Doctor sighed.

Bocoe and Decoe hadn't made it; the pair had been cleaning up after the unpleasantly messy process of Shadow forcing the Chaos Emeralds' power into Cosmo. They hadn't stood a chance of escaping the massive explosion when that same girl had turned the destructive power on his base. Their presence was normally so constant that he'd already assumed they were here again ten minutes after the incident.

An emotion which felt dangerously close to actual shame built up inside the genius. The moment he'd spotted Cosmo face his humanoid and charge up energy, he'd known disaster was imminent – and his thoughts of salvaging valuable objects during his rapid escape had only stretched as far as the now depleted Chaos Emeralds, which were currently sat on a covered shelf near his feet in the capsule. Because they were both perfectly replaceable, he never would have imagined he'd be unhappy at his talkative gold and silver robots being absent, but without them he felt strangely exposed. And what of Bokkun? Had he even been in the base? The Doctor had no idea…but dead or alive, he had a feeling he would never see his tiny TV robot again.

Eggman stared at the lifeless Emeralds, their grey hue a fitting match to his mood. Were these things really worth the admittedly artificial yet still very real lives of his faithful servants? Their efforts were often incompetent, but they had stuck with him through all his yelling and occasionally plain unreasonable orders. Then, when they'd needed him, he had abandoned them. He furrowed his brow. "_Whoa…when did I get so cynical? Is my conscience finally catching up with me?_"

Not being fully aware of what was bothering him infuriated Eggman; he was used to knowing everything. It wasn't just the deaths of his metallic companions – there was an angry mob of other issues crashing around in his head, the crowd too mixed and lively to identify individually.

Was it his manipulation of Heads' free will gnawing at him? The way he'd subsequently exploited the fox to capture Cosmo before giving her the same treatment? Or perhaps it was the memory of his failed clone that wouldn't leave his head, the copy he'd practically sentenced to death minutes after its creation. Eggman shuddered as he remembered seeing it for the first time. "_Those glazed eyes and that expressionless face…I doubt it even knew it existed…_"

No sound whatsoever flowed through his ears, apart from his capsule's low humming and its periodic engine splutters. This eerie quiet brought home a startling truth – he was completely alone, and not just in the literal sense of the word. Six months ago, he'd had everything: travelling companions in the form of Shadow and Rouge, an enemy, the Metarex, against whom he could pit wits and he'd even been given the interesting opportunity to team up with his old rivals to defeat the ambitious plants.

But now everyone was gone. Eggman couldn't believe it had taken him so long to realise he'd gradually been losing followers. For Sonic and the gang to return to their usual habit of not going near him with a barge pole; that much, he had expected. Yet Rouge had been driven away by his actions and now his infectiously upbeat robots were no more. As for Shadow, he had vanished after leading Perfect Cosmo to her original target, instead of returning to the base as per his instructions. "_Could even Shadow have been disdainful of my ways? Is he ever intending to find me again?_" The bat and the hedgehog – those two were the closest he had ever come to having friends. But Eggman knew the same was true for anyone; hindsight was merely an endless road to regret.

It was why he'd never tried his luck with finding his other half who, according to a few sayings and some naïve people, was 'out there waiting' or something stupid like that. He'd never understood why everyone went around trying to earn another person's trust and love, only for so many to fail and spend their lives wallowing in the past. And although he grudgingly knew that it worked out like a dream for a handful of lucky individuals, those people would then often become blind to anyone else outside their own relationship anyway. "_Everyone loses no matter which way you look at the overrated issue!_"

Like Tails and Cosmo. Fate itself had practically shone a guiding light to lead them to each other, but had then turned dark for no apparent reason and thrown everything (including the kitchen sink) at them to break their hearts. The pair had been separated and reunited more times than a pair of magnets being played with by a child, and the irony on this occasion was not lost on Eggman – despite being genuinely surprised at how often they were split, this time it was the man himself who had torn them apart.

The Doctor looked at his watch. Yes, more than five minutes had definitely passed since his retreat. Every word of the hidden message was still burned into his mind…

**HAHA! FOOLS! DID YOU REALLY THINK I'D GIVEN YOU A CHANCE? THERE IS NO WAY TO OPEN THIS! SAY GOODBYE TO YOUR PRECIOUS COSMO!**

He'd invented the cages and the puzzle to bribe Tails a long time ago, while they had been fighting the Metarex and he'd recognised how much the fox cared about Cosmo. Fortunately and somehow also unfortunately, he had never been inclined to use either of them…until now. Keeping them around had finally proved useful. The same puzzle and time limit were assigned to the two cages, but what actually happened when the timers hit zero was quite different. Both were designed to make Tails panic; only one would actually ruin his life.

During his quick exit of the doomed base, the impatient hands of time had allowed the Doctor an opportunity to grab only one of the cages along with the Chaos Emeralds before getting the hell out.

Eggman hoped he had made the right choice.

The glittering lake ended and gave way to scenery of rocky peaks on the horizon. "_Not far now…_"

* * *

Cosmo was in heaven.

Her mind vaguely reflected that in a few seconds her body may well be joining her spirit there, but she wasn't going to spare too much thought for anything right now; most of the cells inside her were focused on the electric sensations Tails was giving her, and how she could return the same gift to him.

The last time she had checked with him, Tails had signalled a single minute left. How much of that had slipped away? Truth be told it felt like three had gone by, but she didn't care – if the spirit of the boy she loved was with her after she died, Cosmo would be eternally happy.

The bars of the cage were making their shared affections slightly awkward, but it was a minor issue. Cosmo's soul was still basking in bliss. "_Oh, Tails…I hope I'm doing as well as you are…this is just…wonderful…_"

Surely a minute couldn't stretch any longer than this; Cosmo wouldn't be surprised if the sun gave out and died because billions of years had raced by while their lips had been dancing. Not that she minded. All she wanted was for Tails to kiss her forever, to make up for those lonely nights when she had only been able to imagine what this moment might be like.

Cosmo suddenly felt something burn inside her. For the first time in her entire life, such a sensation was not born of anger or a bitter sadness; it was a need. They had been sharing their breath for so long that Cosmo experienced a rush of undiluted desire somewhere very, very deep. This new development almost frightened her, but she was simply too intoxicated by the fox to let it turn into anything except more fuel for her passions.

The gentle caress of his lips wasn't enough anymore. The urge to become more intimate was overwhelming and before she knew it, Cosmo was kissing him ferociously. Usually the shy type who stayed quiet, she had no idea what had come over her; a once dormant animal had awakened inside her otherwise plant-like body.

Although they were separated by the cage, Cosmo instinctively tried to pull him right up against her. Tails was dragged forward and fell on top of her, but neither opened their eyes or stopped the fantastic embrace. In fact, the feel of Tails' body so close only made everything so much better. "_Mmm…tell me this isn't a dream…oh, Tails...you're so warm and – wait, what?! He's on top of me?! So that must mean…_"

Cosmo's eyes shot open. She found herself staring into Tails' striking blue eyes – he had frozen too as the same conclusion hit them simultaneously. The pair looked around the circumference of the cage which they both now occupied.

The bars were gone. "Tails! What's going on?" The fox rolled off her, panting and blushing slightly. Cosmo noticed she was no different; her breathing was heavy after giving so much of herself and not being able to come up for air.

Tails ran out of the cage and looked up, presumably to the timer. He gasped. "Cosmo, it's - why aren't we dead?" She knew what he was insinuating and ran out with him to confirm it. Sure enough, the timer was not counting down anymore, simply flashing the same numbers over and over again.

'**0:00'**

Not only that, but the bars of the cage hadn't vanished into thin air at all. Each was obviously set onto some kind of vertical rail, because they had all risen up through the top of the cage and were now pointing up high in the air.

She heard Tails groan. "Oh, I hate him so much…Cosmo, look closely at the timer."

"Hm? What do you mean?" She tilted her head, trying to get a better view – and then spotted it. Lying on top top of the timer was a small bunch of what looked like plastic explosives, but they didn't appear to be real. They were completely inactive and had a tiny flag painted with the word 'BANG!' proudly poking out on top. Cosmo still wasn't very familiar with Mobian humour and classic jokes of the planet, but she didn't need to be to understand that Eggman had double-bluffed them.

"His trick was itself a trick; Eggman guaranteed himself enough time to escape while also not killing anyone. That's just…" Tails shook his head grudgingly. "…genius." He turned to Cosmo and chuckled. "I really need to stop taking the bait every time!"

Although she had been heavily affected by the madman's actions and selfish decisions, thinking about Eggman's constant deceptions was the last thing on Cosmo's mind. She grabbed the fox next to her and hugged him tightly. "Tails…it's finally over. We're free!" Tears of joy formed which she initially tried to blink back, but then she heard Tails' quiet noises which sounded half-way between laughs and sobs. It was ok to cry now; she would never let anything so much as threaten to separate them again.

Cosmo felt as though they were wordlessly reassuring each other through their pure relief, both letting the other know how much they cared and wanted to protect each other. As they shared the release of happy emotions, Cosmo's heart slowed her breathing steadily became more relaxed. Eventually they found themselves stood there, just enjoying the warmth of each other's bodies and the knowledge of their mutual feelings.

Neither of them moved for a long time. They were the only two people in the world, silently relishing in holding each other. Cosmo was almost disappointed when she heard the air echo in her ear as Tails spoke into it quietly. "I'm sorry, Cosmo. I can't believe I was such a coward."

She frowned, sincerely hoping he wasn't about to bring up a minor mistake he made in the past which would be heavily biased to blame himself. Tails' humility was just one of his many attributes which she adored, but she hated seeing him asking her forgiveness for something which had been largely out of his control. Especially not now – they were sharing a heartfelt moment, and she really didn't want its memory to be soured. "Sorry for what, Tails? And please don't put yourself down; don't ever think that you're a coward, because you're the bravest animal I've ever been lucky enough to lay eyes on."

"But I _am_ a coward!" Tails insisted. He pulled away in his own disgrace. "It should have been _me_ who told you first! I'm the guy; _I'm_ supposed to say it!" Cosmo quickly caught onto what was upsetting him and wanted to cut in, but his criticisms of himself were flowing out of his mouth like water rushing from a tap at full blast. "I thought you were about to die and even _then_ I couldn't say it! It only became easy when you told me what I'd dreamed of hearing! Why am I so selfish?! Cosmo, how did you ever learn to put up with –?"

Tails never finished as Cosmo wrapped her arms around him and kissed him to block the stream of negativity. She seriously wanted to stay like that with her lips on his, but she needed her mouth to talk. "Three things, Tails." she said after she'd released him. "Firstly, not being able to tell someone you love them is nothing to be ashamed of. Everyone goes through the same uncertainty, even confident people like Sonic." She pecked his forehead. "You were scared of me rejecting you, weren't you?"

After a few moments of stillness, Tails' body sagged and he nodded slowly. "I'm so sorry! Please don't be angry, I was just…there isn't even a word for how scared I was! Sometimes I thought my feelings were _too _strong – I got paralyzed every time you spoke to me, Cosmo!"

"Shhh…shhh…" she soothed him before he went on another self-depreciating rampage. But despite Tails' obvious distress, her heart couldn't help soaring. The things he was saying; they were exactly how she had felt on the Blue Typhoon. Knowing that he had gone through the same things only made her want to get closer. "The second thing I'd like to say proves the first. If I had to choose the most frightening experience of my life, I would consider picking the day when my family's spaceship was finally caught by the Metarex, or watching you struggle to make the horrifying decision whether you were going to shoot me with the Sonic Power Cannon."

Tails bit his lip. "Please Cosmo, don't…the memories, they still destroy me…"

She took his hand. "But in the end I wouldn't choose them. The most terrifying moment of my life happened less than ten minutes ago, because I had no idea what your reaction would be. I honestly thought you saw me as nothing more than a nuisance who needed to be saved every five minutes." She averted her eyes.

"How could I ever think that, Cosmo?" Tails shook his head and held her against his soft fur. "We've been through so much together; even if you didn't love me back, I wanted us to be very close friends…"

She snuggled into him, still trying to get over how much warmth and comfort his orange and white coat provided. "_And now we can cuddle whenever we want…oh, I'm so happy!" _Cosmo didn't quite understand what he saw in her – she was too thin to be cuddly or warm, and she didn't have two beautiful tails to wrap around him. "_I'm an alien plant who gets kidnapped all the time! How has he ever found time to fall for me?_" But she wasn't complaining. This handsome fox loved her, and she was going to hold onto him and never let go. "Thank you, Tails. You've put all my worries at ease. You're so wonderful!"

Tails smiled widely and once again they dwelled in each other's arms for a while. They were still standing in the middle of the plain with piles of mechanical debris scattered near and far, but the setting didn't feel odd. Cosmo felt like she could share her affections with him anywhere. "Cosmo?"

"Yes, Tails?"

"What was the third thing?"

A smile played on her lips as she gazed into his eyes. "Well…if it hurts you so much that I told you first, why don't you tell me first now?"

The fox's face fell. "It wouldn't be the same, Cosmo. Beforehand neither of us knew, so all the credit goes to you for making me the happiest being alive."

Cosmo gave him a quick kiss. "Come on." she coaxed. "Try not to be so logical about it. Please Tails, I need to hear you say it first too." Her mind attempted to find the right words. "It would…complete me."

Tails managed a smile. "I suppose I can't back out now." He took a controlled breath. "Cosmo, I…I lov – I mean, I – NONONO! Why can't I do it?!"

Cosmo quickly pulled him into a hug before the fox did something stupid. "You're overthinking it, Tails! I know admitting it the first time is hard, but you've just got to let go of your fears. Close your eyes…" She watched him do so. "…and let the uncertainty float from your heart." It was physically impossible to see this happening, but she thought she noticed him relax slightly. "Now open your eyes…" She had positioned herself right in front of him, so his sky blue pools of light looked directly into hers. "…and tell me how you feel."

"…I love you." Tails blinked in surprise as though he was unsure if that had really come out of his mouth. Then a huge grin spread across his face. "I love you!" Tails held her in a near death grip and kissed her before starting to cry on her shoulder. "Oh C-Cosmo, I love you so much! H-how has it t-taken me so long to say it…?"

Cosmo felt her soul join with his. "I love you too, Tails!" She gently turned his head to face hers, leaned in and –

"AWWWWWWWWW! THEY'RE SO PERFECT TOGETHER!" The two jumped apart in shock; it was a good job, because a second later and Amy Rose would have taken Tails down as well. "Cosmo! I _knew_ it! You sly little minx!"

Cosmo wriggled in an attempt to get from underneath the pink hedgehog, but it was to no avail. "Amy, please! Don't torture me for the rest of my life about it!"

Amy leapt off Cosmo and tackled Tails anyway. "And _you_! The dark horse! How did you tell her? Was it romantic?" Tails willed a hammer to appear over her head and let gravity do the work, but it seemed not all wishes came true.

"Come off it, Ames!" came Sonic's voice from a distance. "If you start going all obsessive on those two as well, I'll have to take them with me when I run away!"

Amy hopped to her feet and twirled on the spot. "But look at them! Aren't they just adorable?" Her face wore an ugly expression as Sonic approached. "Why can't _you_ treat me like that instead of avoiding me like you tried to with that damned gas?"

Cosmo's eyes widened as she helped Tails to his feet. "The gas! Are you all alright? It hasn't done anything permanent to you, has it?" Her loving fox looked equally concerned.

"Given me a headache." mumbled Knuckles, who had walked over with Cream. "But yeah, I think we're all good." Then he frowned and pointed at the crater. "But, uh…what's with that huge hole in the ground? Wasn't Eggman's base sat there just a minute ago?"

Tails sighed. "It's a long story, guys. I'll tell you all on the way to Eggman's HQ."

"What?!" echoed the group of animals. Sonic found his voice again first. "We're going straight there?! I mean, I don't go down easy, but even I need to rest sometimes!"

"What choice do we have?" Tails retorted. "I'd bet my last ring Eggman still has all the drained Chaos Emeralds; we've got to take them from him before he recharges them using some hair-brained scheme! Not only that, but he also knows the location of an underground rock formation containing Mowarium! Do you want him to start making clones again?"

Cosmo gently grasped his shoulder. "Please think about this, Tails. Our friends have just fought off an army before being knocked out – they're probably still feeling groggy." She stroked his cheek and whiskers, causing Amy to start jittering about in her peripheral vision. "You might feel energised by our victory, but _we_ have to rest too. Please Tails, all of us need one night of peace."

With everyone staring expectantly at him, Tails had no choice but to bow to the majority. "…Alright. But we leave first thing tomorrow, yeah?"

"YEAH!" cried everyone in unison.

Tails smiled. "Let's go back to my house. And most importantly, _stick together_. Even while we were all there a few hours ago, Cosmo was still kidnapped." They began the journey back home.

Sonic and Knuckles went over to the fox, probably to ask him what had happened during their forced sleep. Meanwhile, Cosmo was approached by Amy and Cream. "Tell us everything, Cosmo." Amy spoke calmly, but there was an edge there that was hinting 'everything means _everything'_.

The plant couldn't stop the blush creeping onto her cheeks. "Well…where to start?"

* * *

Heads stared at the animal who had just materialised in front of him. It took a moment, but with that wolf-like face and unmistakeable glowing orb sat on his head, the recognition soon set in. "You're Oct – uh…Octorty? Or something?"

"Octotto." the killer corrected. "Let's forego the small talk; I'm here because you intrigue me, fox. The last time we met you had so many friends…yet here you are now, skulking around at rock bottom. How did that outcome develop?"

Heads frowned in confusion. "So many friends?"

"Those hedgehogs and whatnot!" the wolf snapped impatiently. "Didn't they defend you? How did you end up so badly injured?"

A scowl crossed the fox's features as he realised Octotto was getting him confused with Tails. "I'm not the same person as the fox _you_ met! _That_ fox teamed up with his friends to beat _me _up after you vanished!"

"But you look exactly like -" Octotto suddenly grinned. "Ahhhh. You must be what Deczehn was going on about with the regeneration. So you're a clone of the fox I encountered? Why did they attack you?"

Heads growled. He was getting fed up of being questioned by this alien; he'd only recently recovered from his injuries. After he had felt strong enough to move, he'd simply fled. What else could he have done? After all, no-one trusted him anymore. It was while aimlessly wandering in deep depression that Octotto had teleported right in front of his face. "I wasn't meant to be created! They wanted to bring back a despicable little green-haired plant! I was merely a disposable extra, a by-product in the experiment! They couldn't face the change I wanted to introduce, so they tried to kill me!" That last part wasn't entirely true; he had attacked them first, but still…

Heads eventually managed to inhale a proper lungful of oxygen – reliving all of the events had taken a lot out of him. He'd never asked to be born, and he felt that all of his sadness was completely unjustified. The world was conspiring against him. "_It's not fair! Why don't I get to be happy?!_"

Heads expected Octotto to just laugh at his misfortune. But to his surprise, the wolf stroked his chin thoughtfully. "A disposable extra, eh? Hmm…believe it or not, I know exactly how that feels." Octotto smirked. "It seems you and I have a lot more in common than I originally thought. Let me guess…you want revenge, right?"

Heads nodded quickly. "Yes! They have to pay!"

"Excellent! I knew that was fury smouldering in your eyes!" Octotto rubbed his hands together. "Listen…I can help you. I have already taken my revenge on my people to gain this!" He pointed at the orb on his head. "But to stand any chance of exacting vengeance properly, you need to be in constant control of your emotions until the time is right, and keep a level head no matter what idiots get in your way – a skill I can clearly see you lack. But then, like I said, I could be of assistance."

Heads narrowed his eyes in suspicion. "What's in it for you? And don't say it's for nothing, because I watched you murder one of your own kind to get your hands on that…crown thing."

Octotto chuckled. "I wasn't going to. Indeed, such a favour comes at a fair price. I require your unwavering loyalty in helping _me_ carry out the next stage of my plan."

"Getting even isn't enough?" Heads asked cautiously.

"Is it ever?"

Heads smiled for the first time in his short existence. He held out a hand. "Allies?"

They shook. "Allies."

**During planning, the general direction of this story has undergone more changes than I care to remember, but at last this story's plot has been finalised! At this point here, you are at what I expect to be just over halfway through this first of three stories.**

**But unfortunately I must also give some other, less exciting news. All readers who have followed this story since the first chapters were published (whom I thank) may have noticed that up to now I've managed to upload new chapters fairly regularly (about one every three days). But the originally large pile of future chapters I had in reserve is inevitably starting to run low; it's just impossible to write so quickly without the style and general fluency becoming shoddy, and I won't publish unsastisfactory work.**

**Even when writing a little every day, chapters take time to perfect and proof-read; as I'm sure every half-decent writer knows, it's absolutely exhausting.  
Basically I need a break. I need time to rest from this story completely before coming back to it with a fresh mind, then I'll need time to review the next few chapters before also writing new ones. In addition, the first draft for the plot of the sequel is under way.**

**I estimate that from the day of this chapter's uploading (11th October), I won't be publishing again for at least three weeks, if not more. But I_ do_ promise I'll be back before the end of November!  
I hope to see you sooner rather than later. **


	20. Chapter 20: Coming Back To Bite

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Sonic the Hedgehog or any affiliated characters; they belong to Sega. I only own the wolf-like aliens.**

**I can't believe it took me so long to remember to write that. Still, better late than never, eh?  
Boring formalities aside, it's good getting back to publishing. Here's your reward for waiting - a nice lengthy chapter to get your teeth/eyes into. And although I can't guarantee anything, updates should start pumping more regularly again, probably at the rate of around one chapter per week.**

**Enjoy! **

A dense mixture of pure relief, unparalleled happiness but still a lurking sense of dread made for an odd state of mind. Thanks to Cosmo's proclamation of her love and the tender affections she had given, Tails' heart was beating in an endless cycle; it would ascend to the highest point in the universe, only to slip into a dimensionless free-fall when the wicked faces of Doctor Eggman and Octotto infected his daydreams of her. Either way, both scenarios made his central organ pound restlessly. The fox just couldn't calm down.

All of this was happening while he tried to nod at appropriate times and make occasional comments to show he was listening to his friends' conversation. He wasn't, of course – it was hard enough to keep his feet from stumbling on the uneven ground and think at the same time. The group were still heading back to his house, although the heavily ridged earth they were traversing told him they were getting close. Tails chuckled when he saw Sonic start hopping about on tip-toe in an obvious attempt to go as fast as possible. At his normal pace, the hedgehog would end up tripping within as many milliseconds as he ran in miles per hour. "_It's a shame not all of us can fly._" Tails mused as he freely waved his namesakes. With Sonic's help, he'd learned to be proud of his twin features, not ashamed."_Then we'd be back in no time and be able to get a decent amount of rest._"

Cosmo seemed to be blundering across the mountainous terrain in an even clumsier fashion than the blue blur. Watching her trip over almost every tiny ridge and slide into almost every tiny crevasse eventually became unbearable and he offered his hand out to her for the millionth time. "Cosmo, this is getting ridiculous! Please don't struggle on your own. Your shoes aren't designed to walk on this surface, so let me pick you up and I'll fly you home!"

She shook her head, not taking her eyes off the ground two feet in front of her. "It would be selfish of me to accept. And you were the one who said we should all stick together."

Tails glanced at the rest of his chatting companions, realising that every one of them was stronger than him. It wouldn't have been so shameful if Cream wasn't among them, but she certainly was, no two ways about it. The rabbit appeared innocent and weak, but only half of that was true; she possessed unbelievable strength for her small stature. He turned back to Cosmo and raised his eyebrows. "Believe me, I seriously wouldn't be much help in a fight. I'm sure they can manage without me if it means you're having an easier time."

"It's not Sonic and everyone I'm worried about, Tails." She raised her head to look at him. "I don't want you to get hurt if someone ambushes us again." Unfortunately Cosmo's attention had been elsewhere a second too long and the earth punished her again, her shoe catching on a rock. Cosmo yelped, arms waving blindly in front of her to stop the fall, but Tails was already there. He caught her and gently helped the plant regain her feet. "Thank you…" she said in a soft voice which, while Tails felt sure it hadn't actually been intended to melt his heart, did so anyway.

The smile curling on his mouth was unavoidable – the mere phonetics of Cosmo's every word made his ears bask in their wonderfully sweet sounds. Slowly he released her, but kept a gloved hand in hers. "At least let me guide you the rest of the way." Tails compromised, resuming the topic before Cosmo's wrong footing. "I won't let you fall."

To his surprise she pulled away quickly. "Please don't go to so much trouble. I'm just a little tired." Cosmo began walking again to show him she could cope, but it turned out she couldn't when she immediately began staggering all over the place, her upper body swaying left and right like a pendulum.

Tails sighed and hurried forward. This time his grip on her hand was more firm. "Cosmo, please do this for me. It hurts me to see you battling something alone and besides, it's a two-way system; you'll help keep me steady too!" He smiled gently, feeling sure this would convince her.

But again she wrenched her hand from his. "No! I can't! I-I'm just a -" Cosmo's voice was shaking and he could see she was on the verge of tears.

"Cosmo? What's wrong?" Tails tried to keep his own voice solid but hints of his rapidly rising concern were escaping his mouth. Less than an hour ago their lips had been connected, resulting in the best experience of his life…yet now Cosmo didn't even want his help when she was clearly exerting herself too much. Was she having second thoughts about him? Had the love she'd admitted been false, said just because she'd believed her death was on the cards? "_Now I definitely won't be able to relax…_" Deciding to make one last attempt, he stood in front of her and held out his arms invitingly. "I'm here for you, Cosmo; I always will be. You can tell me anything."

For some reason this only served to upset her further and she ignored his gesture for a hug. "I d-don't d-deserve your compassion! You're wonderful and I'm a monster! J-just forget about me!" Cosmo made a sudden dash forwards to push past him, but yet again her lack of due respect for the treacherous rock formations was her bane and a small ridge flung her into another fall.

It was a good job Tails was in her flight path this time, because otherwise he'd have been completely helpless to prevent Cosmo from injury. As is was the unexpected force of her impact almost knocked him down with her, but his feet remained sturdy as she toppled straight into his outstretched arms.

By this point his friends had unwittingly gained a small lead on them, and Tails was glad for it – he really didn't want them to overhear Cosmo's unexplained cries. Unfortunately, in a fashion totally typical of the fox's luck, Amy must have turned around to check on them because a moment later he heard her voice echo. "Oh Cosmo, you cheeky girl! You did that on purpose, didn't you? All to be in Tails' arms!" Of course everyone else now turned their heads to the pair too.

Not appreciating five pairs of eyes staring like he was a circus clown, Tails snapped "No she didn't!" The only eyes he cared about were the ones buried in his fur; they had to be dried before she plummeted into a self-loathing mood. "Cosmo just fell! Isn't that right, Cosmo?"

He pulled out of her limp arms, noticing she felt almost like a deadweight – and soon found out why. Cosmo's lack of response wasn't due to a cloud of depression; it was because she had literally collapsed. If Tails wasn't still holding her upright, she'd have slumped to the ground unconscious. "Cosmo?! COSMO! Oh no…please wake up!"

His useless calling was interrupted by Amy taking hold of Cosmo and jostling him out of position to lay her on the ground. "Outta the way! I'm the most medically qualified here. I do stuff like this in my sleep!" Tails wanted to demand which actual qualifications the pink hedgehog had received to justify the fact that she produced hammers bigger than herself out of nowhere (and regularly used them to inflict pain), but he remembered Sonic's comment about her being 'a pretty good nurse'. Arguing right now was pointless anyway, especially when it was Amy on the other end.

Tails watched as she performed some standard checks on the love of his life before she moved onto a few things he didn't quite understand. To the relief of his nerves, it wasn't long before Amy spoke. "It's just as I thought. She's fainted, that's all."

"I'm not surprised!" Knuckles remarked. "Probably knackered from those Chaos Emeralds."

He and Cosmo had already explained the course of events which had occurred while the rest of the group had been flat on the floor courtesy of Eggman's Gasbots. Well, _he_ had explained to them, at least; Cosmo had kept extremely quiet and spoken only when spoken to, and even then in a monotone voice. Tails damned himself for not paying this more heed. "_I should know the signals by now! Cosmo always stays away from everyone and everything whenever she's upset…why didn't I pick up on it?_" But again, he'd left it too late. Tails' body felt twice as heavy as he tried to focus on making it up to her. "So she'll be alright?" he asked Amy worriedly.

"Of course! But what she _does_ need is a cosy bed. Now."

Tails felt his spirits lift in the knowledge that there was something he could do. "Right! I'll fly her back to my house while you all catch up." He made a mental note to insist that Cosmo also ate and drank something promptly after she woke up.

No sooner had his arms lifted her when Cream simply took her off him. "Oh, it's ok Tails! I can handle Cosmo! See you soon!" And before anyone could speak, they were all being buffeted by blasts of wind created by the rabbit's flapping ears.

"What the…" Tails stood there and watched her fly away, feeling both slightly offended and very concerned. Turning to his friends, he asked "What was all that about?"

Sonic shrugged but there was a subtle smile peering out of his expression. "Don't ask me, buddy. Being a good citizen?"

Rouge's smirk was far more obvious. "I think she wanted to get away from the conversation. Y'know, not have to answer how she got her cute little paws on that Chaos Emerald." She sighed and threw up her arms in mock exasperation. "I'd like to learn how she did it too! Maybe I could sniff around for a few tips on jewel hunting…"

Tails rolled his eyes at her predictable comments, but in a way he was thankful that some aspects of his life had remained in line – so many other things were changing at a bewildering rate, including the usually honest outlook of the people he knew. Rouge had brought up a good point on how Cream had come across such a powerful object and why she'd kept it a secret, and that wasn't the worst of it.

What about the terrifying concept of Cosmo transforming? Tails hadn't even known it was possible until Cosmo herself had warned him that the evil power of the Emeralds had been on the cusp of forcing her to physically mutate. The fox wanted to vomit at the thought of his delicate flower unwillingly becoming a feral beast, the shape of which he didn't even want to start imagining.

Then there was Octotto. Tails still held out hope that their paths would never cross again, but the murderous alien had 'guaranteed' they would encounter him sooner or later. Not to mention Heads, an insane copy of himself now roaming free. "_Cosmo may be safe, but there's a horrible amount of things we still have to establish and resolve. And this is assuming Eggman doesn't stick his moustache further into the mix…_"

If it was any consolation, one thing was clear to Tails. Cosmo came first, and that was exactly the basis upon which he was going to act from now on. "Guys, I'm following Cream home." he told the group. "I'll help her look after Cosmo." He propelled his bushy tails into a rhythmic spin and took off. "Get back soon, yeah?"

"Sure thing!" Sonic winked. "C'mon guys; I can't let Tails beat me, not even to the end of these stupid mountains!" Tails smiled as he heard Sonic's fading voice still complaining about the terrain hindering his speed.

Flying definitely passed as one of the more satisfying things in Tails' life. It hadn't taken him long, even during his early childhood, to recognise that the ability to soar through the sky without aid was a huge privilege. But now, just as it had felt in the months after Cosmo's death, travelling freely in the air wasn't providing the usual exhilaration. Tails' mind was infested with worry for Cosmo, leaving no space for enjoyment. Right now, flying was merely a means to an end.

Fortunately he must have been closer than he'd thought or just flown really fast, because Tails was relieved to see his home come into view soon after. An extra burst of speed launched him to the front door where he knocked loudly. "Hey! It's -"

Cream opened it almost immediately. "I knew you'd follow me!" she said. "Don't worry, I tucked Cosmo in upstairs." She pointed a finger upwards. Tails ran to the stairs but Cream quickly blocked him at the base of them. "No, you mustn't disturb her! Even if she _is_ awake now, she needs sleep."

He understood her point, but nothing was going to keep them apart. Gently placing a hand on her shoulder, he said "You didn't see it Cream, but Cosmo was really upset before she passed out. She needs a shoulder to cry on; someone to tell her it'll be ok. Besides, if Cosmo's fainted from exhaustion then she'll need food and water as well."

Cream's chocolate brown eyes widened before she hung her head. "Oh…I'm sorry Tails. You're right." She stepped aside looking ashamed.

Tails could hardly leave the little rabbit like that, so he drew himself up to his full height and hugged her. "Hey, come on. I know you only want what's best for all of us." Cream lifted her head and nodded slowly, leading to Tails breaking out into a grin. "There you go! Now let's go check on Cosmo together."

A much happier looking Cream beamed and ran upstairs, Tails close behind. She stopped outside his bedroom, which made him frown. "You didn't put her in the guest room?" Tails whispered, afraid of rousing Cosmo if she was already in dreamland.

"No." Cream whispered back. "Does it matter?"

"…I guess not." But secretly he wasn't entirely sure how the sight of Cosmo sleeping in his own bed would affect him. Every night during her absence he had lay awake for countless hours, suffocating from a terrible longing for Cosmo's presence next to him; feeling the same as a black hole day in, day out had almost sucked him down to an empty shell. Tails was naturally elated that he didn't have to cope with such crushing emotions anymore, but now that Cosmo _was _in his room and resting in his bed, the knowledge that he couldn't reasonably climb in and cuddle with her (especially in front of Cream) was a needle in his heart.

This grew into a lethal knife when he and Cream exchanged a nod and entered the room. Cosmo was trying to muffle them in a pillow, but her cries were all too audible. Tails felt an urge to rush to her side and hug her, but the ever-dominant logical portion of his brain told him that wouldn't be enough. Cosmo's fragile self-esteem didn't allow physical affection alone to heal her mental wounds; she responded best to a close friend speaking reason and encouragement to her softly, and Tails knew this was exactly the kind of comfort he needed to offer.

He turned to Cream and pointed a finger down at the floor with one hand while making a motion of drinking with the other, hoping she would interpret it as the intended meaning of 'get Cosmo some water'. She nodded and exited before Tails slowly knelt down by the bedside. Even with her head buried in his pillow, he could tell Cosmo was aware of his presence because she quickly tried to silence herself, although her body was still shuddering.

When it became obvious that she was never going to look up, Tails quietly spoke her name. "Cosmo?" Loud sobs immediately escape her mouth and she shuffled her frame to face the other side of the bed. Having expected something like this, Tails calmly stood up and walked around the bed so she faced him, but her wet eyes were tightly closed. He knelt down again. "Cosmo…I'm here." Her wordless reply was the same as she twisted her body the other way.

It pained him to watch her so blatantly reject his attempts to console her, but Tails knew it wasn't caused by a dislike of him; it was in fact the complete opposite, a hatred of herself so powerful that she didn't feel worthy of anyone's company. Unfortunately this was no relief for the fox, since he was familiar with that same feeling and didn't want the girl he loved to go through its effects of hopeless turmoil.

Once again Tails stood up, walked around and knelt down. The amount of time Cosmo needed to accept him as someone she could love didn't matter – he knew that eventually she would need a person she trusted to be there for her. "I'm not going to leave, Cosmo. I'll do this forever until you talk to me, because I can't let you blame yourself for everything."

She violently shook her head with her eyes still clamped shut. "No…I-I'm so pathetic…I d-don't deserve you…" Despite this sounding like a step in the wrong direction, Tails saw this as progress; Cosmo hadn't turned away, plus she was talking to him.

He reached a hand into the bed sheet in search of hers. Cosmo flinched when he found it but did not pull away, so he began stroking the soft skin with his thumb. "Please Cosmo, don't say that. I've already told you that you deserve everything after what you sacrificed."

"And I undid all that when I tried to kill you!" Cosmo's eyes shot open and Tails was taken aback when they revealed their usual whites to be streaked with veins of green. It took him a few frightening moments to realise this was due to the colour of Cosmo's blood – her Seedrian-born eyes were simply bloodshot.

She withdrew her hand and positioned it out of reach. "Why can't you see that I bring you nothing but disaster?" By now Cosmo's voice was distorted by a mixture of frustration and despair. "There are so many other girls that would fall for you, because you're perfect! You have to leave me and find one of them before I accidentally murder you or one of your friends!"

This _was_ a step backwards. "I'm not perfect." Tails said quickly, trying to keep his voice level in the hope that she would do the same. "My list of faults is endless. But I won't abandon you…I never would. I couldn't." He ran his fingers through her shining hair, seriously wanting her to understand just how deep his feelings ran. "I love you Cosmo, flaws and all, and I wouldn't ever fall for anyone else."

Even this couldn't pacify her. "JUST GO!" she screamed, flinging herself to the other side of the bed and completely hiding every part of her body underneath the sheets. Tails was heartbroken as he listened to her crying – his efforts to comfort her had failed, and the agonising sense of helplessness didn't take long to kick in.

At that moment Cream hurried into the room carrying a glass of water. "I heard shouting! Is everything – oh no! Cosmo!" She started towards the trembling bump in the bed but Tails held out an arm to stop her before shaking his head. Cream seemed to understand and bit her lip.

Tails took the water from the rabbit and placed it on his desk. "Cosmo, listen. We're going to give you some space…it hurts me to leave you like this, but I understand that everyone needs time alone." His voice became stern. ""Cream's left you some water here which you _need _to drink. Promise me you won't let yourself get dehydrated." No answer. "Cosmo, I'm not leaving until you promise me that you'll drink it. No matter what you say, I'll always care about you."

This must have connected with her somehow because she slowly uncovered her head and looked at him through those pools of light, beautiful even with the green evidence of sorrow within them. "I…I promise…"

He smiled in relief. "Thank you." This seemed to set him on a roll and an idea hit him. He opened his cupboard and rummaged for a rusty old bell which he'd received a long time ago as a useless birthday present from his parents. It was small but surprisingly loud, tinkling slightly as he pulled it out. "_Here's hoping it finally comes in handy._"

Putting it alongside the water, he said "I know you might not want to greet everyone when they come back, so I'll tell them you're sleeping. If you want to talk or just need a hand to hold, ring this and I'll come straight up. Ok?"

Cosmo nodded and a tear fell down her cheek, adding to the puddle of sadness already on the bed. "Tails…please forgive me for shouting. I just need some time to think. Please understand…I'm so sorry…"

Feeling a thousand times better, the kitsune kissed her on the head. "I understand completely. Try to get some sleep. For me?"

The girl of his dreams managed a smile through her otherwise pained expression. "Thank you, Tails. You really are perfect…"

He scratched the back of his head and laughed nervously. "Thanks, but that's not true. Remember, give the bell a ring if you need anything at all." Tails winked before turning to the door. "Come on Cream, let's – huh?"

She was gone. Tails rotated his head back to Cosmo and gave her a questioning look, but she appeared just as confused as him. "I'm sorry Tails, I didn't see Cream go out either. She's probably just downstairs."

"Oh yeah…" Tails' face displayed a bashful smile at his stupidity. After a wave goodbye he left Cosmo in peace, closing the door behind him.

* * *

Regardless of the actual length of time, whether it was a few seconds, a minute or perhaps an entire month, those occasions in life when everything flew by at light speed were surreal experiences. Being the victim of a robbery, proudly guiding your children in their growth or just doing something you enjoyed…all were good examples of those times, with attached emotions ranging from unbridled joy to heart-stopping terror, where you were left in a stunned silence afterwards asking yourself what had happened.

For Cream the blitz of rapidly turning time had been relatively short; even in reality it had only lasted a couple of minutes. But that hadn't made it any easier to watch the boy she'd fallen so hard for admit the extent of his devotion to another.

The first sight presented to her when she'd woken up from the Gasbots' drug was the pair of them kissing. Amy had cut it short, but those few seconds alone of watching his lips on hers had brought Cream's world crashing into a hellish nightmare. It was half the reason she had offered to take Cosmo back – she couldn't afford to show her heartbreak in front of everyone.

But it was after his return to the house when everything had truly ended. Whilst getting Cosmo the water, she'd listened to every word of his honest claims of everlasting love for the plant. This confirmation of both his physical and emotional connection towards Cosmo had broken Cream. She'd hastily dropped off the water in Tails' room but couldn't bear to stay a second longer – before her brain had known what her legs were doing, she'd fled from the house and flown as far away as possible feeling like she'd been stabbed.

She had finally accepted how she felt about a month ago. During her regular visits to his house after Cosmo's death, Cream had at first denied the butterflies that had started to flutter chaotically in her stomach every time she saw him, passing them off as a want to make him feel better as opposed to a desire to actually feel his fur against hers. But every time she talked to him it felt as though twice as many flapping wings had migrated inside her body, confusing her more and more until eventually the effect he had on her became unmistakeable – Cream was in love with him.

Despite the gradually dawning realisation, she had until recently refused to believe it was real love; after all, her mother had taught her that such a feeling didn't spring from nowhere and present itself on a shining stage. Cream had used these wise words alongside her recognition of her young age as excuses to convince herself that she was just harbouring an extremely heavy crush on the fox.

But it had also been her mother who'd restricted their time spent together, because Cream had wanted to go to that house every single day, simply to help, to comfort…to _hold_ him. Was this what her mother had feared? Had she in fact discovered the engraved Chaos Emerald and kept it to herself, just making sure to disrupt any extended contact between them? "_Mother, if you did sense my feelings and tried to intervene, then I'm sorry…but you didn't do enough._"

Cream knew now how much she needed Tails – not as a helping hand but as a way of life. They had been friends for so long that since their toddler years she had teetered on the edge of taking him for granted; never would she make that mistake again. Always there for each other, perhaps it had been inevitable that she would grow to adore him.

The unspoken promise they had sworn to keep came to mind; no matter how boring or distasteful they found each other's hobbies and habits, they would stay by one another and offer their total support. This mutual protection was why they were as close as ever even after Cream could make no sense of Tails' obsession with mechanics and his technobabble, and vice-versa with her reluctance to grow out of cuddly toys and all things cute. Cream was adamant that whatever made him happy, would make her happy too.

But Cosmo made Tails happy. No, scrap that, the plant lifted him to a place more sacred than heaven. And that presented an enormous problem. Cream loved Cosmo like a sister, in part because they shared the same docile disposition and genuine politeness. After that, every other selfless quality Cosmo possessed only made her more loveable. But now that the alien had won Tails' soul, the beautiful entity which Cream had pined after since forever, the dilemma of how she should treat and talk to Cosmo made her want to scream.

She couldn't go home. Her mother would only endlessly question her, maybe even asking if it was Tails' newfound bliss at Cosmo's return on her mind. She just couldn't face that – she needed to be alone. Cream could feel a black pit of emptiness opening its maw, the liquid sorrow behind her eyes telling her she was about to cry harder than she had ever done in her life.

When the waterfall began Cream feared it would never cease, because aboard the Blue Typhoon she had befriended a grieving girl who had lost everything, and she had intended to mend the wounds which the girl's own race had inflicted. Now, eight months later, the Seedrian had unknowingly stolen Tails away.

Cream had cared for Cosmo. She had soothed her lifelong pain. And in a cruel twist, it had finally arrived full circle to savagely slash her heart.

**Not hugely important to the main plot, I'm sure you agree, but in this chapter I wanted to try something really descriptive and focus on getting into the minds of the characters. Let me know if I did a good job; this is a very experimental chapter. **


	21. Chapter 21: The Mourning Tree

"_I'm a murderer._"

That thought still pestered Octotto as he threw a fourth sword with pinpoint accuracy, leaving it quivering against the hastily-painted bulls-eye on the stone wall. He'd found the blades in the deepest chambers of the abandoned castle he now called home. A very temporary home, no doubt, but nonetheless it was a place of refuge against a growing number of species who defied him.

Yes, he had killed one of his own kind. Octotto would have liked to be able to say it had been nothing personal, but Septsiet had always irked him to no end with his goody-two-shoes model soldier act. The dead wolf meant one less to stand in his path anyway. So why was it bothering him?

Annoying behaviour aside, Octotto had to admit he hadn't really enjoyed shooting him. A few years back, when murder was just one of those dreadful things other people did, he'd figured that if you were going to take someone's life then you might as well take the pleasure of the kill along with it. Yet even now with his hands metaphorically stained red, he'd disobeyed his own outlooks.

Not that it really mattered. This wasn't going to change his intentions or make him have a revelation about the sanctity of life and suddenly become a God-following zombie like the rest would. "_I didn't like it because even I'm not that twisted. I'm a man who's willing to do whatever it takes to get what I desire. That's all. Septsiet's death was necessary, and I'm going to think no further on the subject._"

He plucked the sword from the wall and twirled it slowly. "Something bothering you, Heads?" he asked to the space behind him.

Although he couldn't see the fox, Octotto sensed him jump. "What the…how did you know I was watching?"

In response he simply tapped the glass surface of the orb on his head. Octotto hadn't so much as heard Heads breathing; it was the sphere set in the decorative crown which had alerted him. Its constantly glowing aura had gifted him not only the power of short-range teleportation and increased strength, but it had also heightened his senses until they were honed to an incredibly fine-tuned level – the evidence being the small dent in the wall where he'd hurled all four swords into that exact spot from thirty feet every time.

But his divine interventions and newfound physical prowess didn't make him feel like a deity. The orb wasn't just an energy source; Octotto was sure it had a consciousness of its own. Despite not being in possession of it for very long, he'd already experienced moments when he had not been himself, as though the orb hid sneaking roots that crept unnoticed into his skull to hijack his mind. And most worryingly of all, these blurs of uncontrolled thought manifested themselves as images depicting evils even greater than his homicide.

He wasn't a king with a mighty weapon. No, he was merely the servant of a higher power which could not function without a host. "_For all I know it could have long planned to betray its bearer and decide to vaporise me when I achieve whatever the hell it wants me to do._" Then again, this entire train of thought could be absolute rubbish – Deczehn had worn it for over a year, if undeservedly, and all he'd ever suffered from was a lack of ambition. Octotto had already concluded that the rewards outweighed the risks. "_Even if it does want to exploit me, given time I'm sure _I_ could learn to control _it_. Then I WILL be unstoppable!_"

The hybrid-wolf realised Heads was still stood there, so he turned to face the kitsune and frowned. "You know, just because we're allies now doesn't mean I want you following me like a lost dog. This isn't a helpline; it's an agreement of fair give and take. When I put my plan on wheels, I expect you to assist. So when you come up a dastardly plot of your own, _then _we'll talk about how I can help. I'm not doing everything for you." He held the lethal sword casually, but it was raised slightly to emphasise his point.

"I've got something in the works." Heads replied in a bad attempt at being mysterious. "Let's just say Tails will be screaming in pain before I even draw the first drop of his blood!"

His voice was seeping with hatred, but Octotto could only hear the boy's undeveloped tone behind the words. Heads sounded exactly like Tails had when the wolf had first met the group of Mobians: like a child. To Octotto, hearing the accidentally cloned fox spitting such dark promises in his relatively high voice was, in short, hilarious. "Sounds intriguing…I can't wait for your scheme's unveiling." he said slowly, trying to minimise the sarcasm. "So why _are _you watching me chuck swords at a castle wall? I know I'm good, but still…"

"_Too _good." answered Heads with a poisoned smirk. "And I've got a feeling it's that thing on your head that's responsible for the sudden talent."

Octotto clapped loudly, this time making no attempt to conceal his sarcastic demeanour. "Bravo! Genius! No-one else would ever guess it's the thing I _killed _for which is improving everything about me!" He laughed when he saw the state of Heads' unappreciative face. "Oh dear, you really don't have time for anything except revenge, do you? Fine then, let's talk business. What intrigues you so much about the orb?"

One side of Heads' face fell as though he'd just asked the dumbest question in history. "Well, let me put it this way. Sensing other people when you can't see or hear them. Huge gains in physical power. _Teleportation_, for God's sake! What sort of crystal ball can give anyone those abilities?" The fox folded his arms and a look of intense curiosity appeared on his face. "I'm intrigued by everything about it! How did Deczehn originally obtain it? Where did it come from? Is it from your home planet? Why does it glow when it's on your head, but never did on Deczehn's?"

Octotto held up a hand to signal for Heads to stop the bombardment of questions. "Just a minute! First of all, even _I _don't know everything about it. But even if I did, I'm sure you can understand that I can't blab everything to an ally who hasn't yet proved his worth." This was one thing on which Octotto was adamant; he couldn't afford to spill secrets of the orb's past, lest Heads almost certainly make an attempt to swipe it. He was rightly suspicious of the fox's motives and actual sanity in the first place, so letting him in on any valuable information may well end up returning as a knife in his back. Heads knew what powers the orb bestowed – that was more than Octotto wanted him to know already. "The only question you asked which I'm prepared to answer is that it glows when someone of worth wears it. What the thing considers 'worthy' is another story, but it's obvious that I possess far better traits than Deczehn. Hence, I get the lovely benefits."

"Fair enough. But if that's your only offer, don't expect me to tell you anything either." the fox replied curtly. They stood in tense silence for a few seconds before Heads released his breath in a frustrated sigh and turned to leave. "Come see me when you realise the advantages of logical teamwork." he said. Heads looked back and shook his head, stopping for a moment at the top of the ancient steps leading down to the entrance of the castle. "You're as tight-lipped as that Seedrian was…" His footsteps echoed as he left.

Octotto had actually zoned out at 'advantages', not in the mood to get a hypocritical lecture about trust by a bitter being who knew very little about the real world. Yet one word which had passed over his ears did a U-turn and connected with his brain. "What did you say?!" He whirled around in search for Heads, but the damned fox had vanished. "Wait! COME BACK!"

Heads launched back into the room, fists raised – then lowered when he realised there was no enemy. "You nearly frightened the tails off my spine! What was that yelling for?"

Octotto grabbed Heads' shoulders in a vice grip. "Did you say…_Seedrian_?" His victim tried to wrestle free but the wolf only squeezed tighter and shook him. "I said, did you say 'Seedrian'?! Answer me!"

Heads growled. "Yes! She's the green-haired girl I was telling you about when we first decided to work together! The one who was regenerated with me before I got dumped as the expendable extra! Now LET, ME, GO!"

As if he was going to do that. Octotto picked him up by the throat with one hand and carried the struggling animal to a stone stool, where he near enough slammed him onto it. "You're going to tell me _everything _you know about this Seedrian! How was this girl regenerated at the same time as you? Why did those Mobians bring her back in favour over any other dead Seedrian? WHERE IS SHE?!"

"So _now_ you want to talk?" Heads spat on the floor. "Pah! Like I said before, my lips are sealed unless you've got something useful to talk about with that orb!"

Octotto waved a hand dismissively. "Yes, yes, whatever you need to know! I'll tell you every last scrap of knowledge I have! But first, you _must_ tell me about the Seedrian!" Throughout his entire miserable life, he'd never changed his mind so quickly and with such certainty.

But the orb didn't matter anymore. If what Heads was saying was true, the shining sphere inside his usurped crown would become a laughable side-show. Because Seedrians were the reason his life had taken the horrific turn which had left him traumatised and scarred. Seedrians had made his existence torturous until they'd started their civil war and almost wiped themselves out. And if there was so much as one measly Seedrian still feeding from breaths of the same air as him, he would hunt until its body lay in a lifeless pile of bloodied rags before him.

Killing Septsiet had been quick and unpleasant. But this time, he would savour every second of murder.

* * *

Tails had always thought that finding a rabbit who loved her friends, was very dependent on others and also had a particularly distinguishable voice wouldn't be a difficult task. However, with five sharp animals failing to locate her, he was rapidly being proved wrong.

He gave up. He'd looked everywhere: in the attic, under the stairs, in the basement, under the beds – name it and he'd checked it. As a last resort he'd searched his workshop and underground storage lab, although her absence there came as little surprise seeing as access to both of his prized facilities required the new password.

It was his fault. The moment he'd left Cosmo to sleep away her troubles, he'd known something was wrong. His senses had been screaming it. Tails had expected to hear perhaps the television blaring downstairs, or maybe rustling in the kitchen as she prepared herself a snack. Even being the endlessly polite girl that she was, she would know that she was welcome to anything in his house; they were best friends and those were exactly the kind of indulgences which Tails knew she would immediately go for. But the house had answered with silence.

A hurried skim of his home had only confirmed his fears. Cream was gone.

Thankfully the rest of his friends had arrived minutes later, but that had still been enough time for his brain to panic and assume another kidnapping. He could tell that everyone was more than a bit miffed about being instantly sent back out as a search party, with grumbles such as "So much for my power nap…" being thrown around by Sonic. Yet they were all aware how critical a fast reaction was and so they'd split up, Amy trying to call Cream's mobile phone as she left.

Tails had stayed, of course. Someone needed to be there to ensure Cosmo's safety; in the last few hours she had endured more suffering and been steamrolled with more emotions than many experience in a year. Who better to guard her than Tails? "_I'll protect her with my life. There's nothing I wouldn't do to make Cosmo happy after everything she's been through._"

Yet _still_, as though the universe was deliberately victimising him for a cheap laugh, relaxation refused to enter his system. The notion that as long as Cosmo was with him then he'd be content had flown out the window from that first heart-stopping second of realising Cream had vanished – Cosmo represented a brand new world filled with promise, but his friends were his rock, standing strong as an unmoving shoulder upon which he could lean whenever he needed to feel the comforts of old times. He couldn't live without them.

Since he couldn't sit still or disturb Cosmo, Tails wandered helplessly around the house. Doing nothing was fruitless, but what _could _he do? Cream had surely been kidnapped; she was slightly irresponsible sometimes, yes, but she wouldn't just leave without telling him. Cursing himself for making the same mistake as he had when Cosmo was stolen, he let out a defeated groan of pain. There was nothing he could do except wait for Sonic to play hero.

Wound up as he was, the suddenly very loud beep of his phone ringing made him jump out of his skin. Checking the ID revealed it to be…Amy? "_Oh no…this can't be good…_" She was definitely the least likely to have rescued Cream, leaving only the possibility that something had gone horribly wrong. With a shaking hand he lifted the receiver, knowing news of someone's bad injury would be fed into his ear by a panicking pink hedgehog.

It actually turned out he was wrong again, and this time he was damn glad for it. "I've found her." Amy said, sounding relieved herself. "Don't worry, she's…she's not got any bruises or cuts."

Tails frowned at the uncharacteristic pause and odd choice of words. "Are you sure Cream's alright? How did you rescue her?"

"Like I said, she's…not been touched." Amy spoke cautiously again. "And in fact Cream called me first to tell me where she was. Tails, she wasn't kidnapped; she just went to the Luctumarbor."

The Luctumarbor was a lone-standing tree not far from his house which he and Cream had discovered shortly after his third birthday. Neither of them had christened it with the foreign name, someone else having already carved the letters into the bark. A special place was reserved in both of their hearts for it – they'd spent many afternoons just lying under its protective shadow, sharing what back then was important to them as toddlers. Of course, what with the unfortunate process called growing up and the even more unfortunate plotting machine that was Eggman's brain, there just wasn't time anymore. Tails felt a small pang of longing; he still missed those carefree hours with her.

Nevertheless, that was hardly important right now. "Hang on…_wasn't_ kidnapped?" Tails repeated in disbelief. "Are you telling me Cream took off for no reason without leaving so much as a note, probably knowing that we'd all fly into a frenzy looking for her?"

"Yes and no." came Amy's annoyingly uninformative reply. "I wouldn't say it was for no reason."

The kitsune ran a hand through his bangs, getting increasingly fed up with her evasive attitude. His voice nearly automatically raised but he restrained himself; running the risk of waking up Cosmo wasn't appealing. "So Cream's told you why she ran off?" The silence on the other end was all the answer he needed. "Then tell me!"

More silence, but this one couldn't give him any sort of unspoken meaning. Tails was about to demand an explanation again until he remembered something else. Their reasons for no longer visiting the Luctumarbor delved much deeper than a mere lack of time. That day, on Cream's fourth birthday…he didn't even want to recall anything about the horrific incident. Just lying under the tree on her day of celebration, only for _that _to happen – the old place now held nothing but painful memories.

And Cream had gone there. Tails felt an unpleasant stinging sensation in his stomach as Amy's careful comments that Cream only had no 'cuts or bruises' began to make grim sense. "Amy…be honest with me." Tails spoke as calmly as possible. "Is she ok?"

"I told you before." Amy replied quietly, although there was a certain edge to her words. "No-one's touched her."

Enough was enough. Tails stormed into his living room and shut the door so Cosmo wouldn't hear before shouting "Stop dodging the question! You know what I mean! I have the same right as you to know if my friend is happy!"

Amy's return scream rendered him unable to hold the phone closer than five inches from his ear. "FINE! NO SHE'S _NOT_ ALRIGHT! LISTEN!" She must have brought her phone closer to Cream because the unmistakeable, terrible sound of the rabbit sobbing began vibrating in his head. Plenty of times before he'd seen her cry, but her weeping seemed to be fuelled by a pain he'd never heard from her; the noises she was making were indescribable. "I CAN'T CONSOLE HER! SHE'S ABSOLUTELY DISTRAUGHT, AND GUESS WHOSE FAULT IT IS!"

Tails closed his eyes, feeling the rhetorical theme of conversation looming again. Shouting back at Amy would result in nothing more than hard feelings and awkwardness when she returned to his house, so he lowered his voice. "What do you mean? _Is_ it anyone's fault? Amy, please just tell me what's wrong with Cream."

After an exasperated moan, the hedgehog somehow managed to calm herself for once. "Look, it's not for me to say, and it's _really _not something to be discussed over the phone. Cream will tell you when she's ready." He heard a few shushing noises and quiet words of reassurance as she attempted to stem the rabbit's flow of sadness, which Tails could still hear. "We'll come back to yours as soon as Cream feels ready. I'll phone Sonic and Rouge to tell them she's safe; you call Knuckles."

Tails inhaled slowly, fighting for full control of his breathing and heart rate. Glad that Amy was finally making sense, he said "Alright, but try not to be too long. And Amy…!" he added quickly before she hung up. "…why isn't Cream ready to tell me as well? I've known her all my life and we're best friends, so I'm sure I can help her feel better. Can she truly not tell me the problem?"

"…No." came the blunt reply. "She can't."

The call disconnected. Tails foresaw a wave of depression about to strike but momentarily pushed it back – he still had a job to do. Punching numbers into the phone didn't release any tension whatsoever, although at least he'd been tasked with informing the least talkative animal. The fox and echidna each spoke a single sentence before ending the call, Knuckles' being "Got it, on my way back."

_Now_ Tails allowed his body to collapse onto the sofa and his mind promptly attacked him with raw guilt. The knowledge that Cream had deliberately ran away without telling him, the fact that it was to their once special place where she had fled, the way Amy had yelled at him to 'guess whose fault' it was – all of this amounted to one glaringly obvious reality.

The blame lied entirely with him. There was no escaping that he had driven Cream away, and no matter how much he wished he could be clueless as to the reason, Tails' incredible IQ didn't even need to dip into triple digits to figure out why. Simply put, he had neglected her. But it was with a tsunami of shame that he realised there was no simple way of expressing the sheer extent to which his ignorance had stretched.

Tails had always got along with Cream, but it was after Cosmo's death that their bond had become both even stronger and yet simultaneously so much more distant. Cream had been the one encouraging a positive attitude and the development of their friendship, always prepared to listen and offer support. She'd visited him far more often than could be considered fair on her part, and even when Vanilla had prevented her daughter from seeing him anymore, Cream had phoned him every single day. Just to talk. So he could get things off his chest. So he didn't go insane.

Her devotion to ensuring he didn't lose the will to live if his efforts to bring back Cosmo failed had known no bounds. Tails had transformed into a spiteful recluse, snapping at anything that dared try to sympathise with him. Most of his friends had stayed away not because they didn't care, but because he'd practically locked any path into his life so no-one could enter. Not Cream, though. The rabbit had pushed past his mental barriers and ignored his cries to be left alone; she'd known better. She knew he'd badly needed a very close friend in whom to confide, and had provided exactly that. Tails hated the thought, but he recognised that without her, suicide would have been an option in serious consideration. "_If it wasn't for Cream, that fantastic day when Cosmo returned may well have been the day of my funeral…_"

And how had he repayed her? By ranting on and on about his broken heart and how much he missed Cosmo, never once stopping to ask if _she_ was hurting about the Seedrian's death. In hindsight it was very obvious that Cream had been in a state of deep distress, but she hadn't shown it, bravely deciding to utilise her pain in a constructive manner to guide him through the darkest days of his life. Yet time after time he'd repelled her with the belief that he didn't need anyone but Cosmo – selfish and foolish were not words which justified the behaviour of the cold-hearted fox that had reigned within him during those months. Aside from ripping their relationship apart, he'd done nothing but waste everything the rabbit had selflessly sacrificed for him.

Physics dictated that every action had an equal and opposite force; Tails now realised just how true this was. Cream was the rightful positive force with a constructive result, while he had wrongly acted as the opposing destructive force. And as any scientist knew, adding together opposite forces of the same magnitude gave you nothing. A flat line. Something dead.

Tails felt like that now. No living thing would require more proof to conclude he was guilty of mistreating his best friend, but this expansive field of Cream's altruism hadn't yet even touched upon her more recent deeds, including her intended gift of a Chaos Emerald as well as spotting the mistake with the radio wave machine. "_How could she remain so loyal and want to give me something so precious after the hell I put her through? I should be the one giving _her _absolutely everything…_" But it seemed that Cream could just take no more of his ungratefulness, and Tails couldn't blame her. "_No wonder she ran away…how can I ever make it up to her?_"

His tears had started falling quite a while ago, but the very likely possibility that Cream now truly hated him caused a massive wall of despair to crush him. Tails found himself lying on his stomach with his head buried in a cushion, reduced to a wailing mess of fur. All he could do was lie there, paralyzed and emitting the same strangled noises as the rabbit had over the phone, the same girl he didn't deserve to know. "P-please C-Cream…I-I'm s-s-so sorry…" his mouth uselessly begged independent from his brain. "I s-still want t-to b-be your friend…d-don't l-leave me…"

If Tails hadn't felt the hand gently grasp his own, God only knew how long he would have remained in his psychological torture chamber. But the contact, along with the comforting sensation of a second hand stroking his muzzle, gave him the incentive to lift his head.

Cosmo was kneeling down next to him with a look of pure concern radiating from her beautiful eyes. "Tails…" she spoke softly in that sweet voice of hers. He wanted to ask her what she was doing, tell her to get back into bed, but his mouth could only form more plaintive sobs. Cosmo's continued attempts to get through to him were in vain as he allowed the self-pity to overwhelm him; perhaps suffering for long enough would indemnify a small part of Cream's misery which he had caused.

In spite of a desire to ignore everything, an unusual sound was surprisingly effective at making anyone become curious and look around to deduce the source. Tails experienced this when he heard a nearby jingling noise. His head instinctively shot up to see Cosmo holding the bell he'd given her earlier. She rang it again, this time not to grab his attention but instead to stir his memory of its meaning. "_She wants to talk to me._"

"Cosmo…" he managed to say while wiping away the tears. "I'm sorry about that, what do you want to -" But she silenced him with a finger placed on his lips, and using her other hand she held the bell out to him.

It took Tails a moment to realise it was a gesture of offering – she wanted him to take it. Slightly confused, he slowly closed his fingers around it before Cosmo returned to caressing his fur. "Tails…I can't bear to see you unhappy. You're too noble and caring to admit it, but I know you sometimes suffer from the same self-confidence issues as I do." A contorted frown spoiled her flawless features. "Please forgive my childish behaviour before – I was just so worried that you didn't love me because I tried to kill you." Although a lonely tear fell down her cheek, Tails sensed she would quell the others as her lips curled into a sad smile. "But you were right, as always. That sleep really helped, because I woke up knowing that everything you said was true. You honestly love me. And I love you too…so very, very much. So now it's my turn, Tails. Let me heal you. Please…talk to me." Her eyes glanced towards the bell in his loose grip.

An invitation to liberate some of his haunting shadows had just been extended to him by his angel. The part of him which wished only for Cosmo's happiness wanted to refuse help, but holding every fleck of shame about Cream inside was just impossible. Tails knew what he had to do.

Cosmo smiled as he rang the bell.

**Things are still moving pretty slowly here; I figured that after the danger-filled and mostly action-orientated run that was chapters 12-19, a lull was in order where everyone isn't trying to kill each other. **

**But as they say, nothing lasts forever... **


End file.
